EATONTON - A Putnam County grand jury has almost doubled the number of crimes alleged against Dwight York, the leader of the United Nuwuabian Nation of Moors. <br>
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The grand jury handed down a 208-count indictment Thursday, naming York in 197 of the charges, almost all of which are child molestation or aggravated child molestation. <br>
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In 1993, York, 57, along with 100 or so of his followers in the quasi-religious sect, moved from Brooklyn, N.Y., to a 400-acre rural property in Putnam County. <br>
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A joint federal-local investigation began after police received anonymous tips that York was molesting children in the group. A May indictment charged him with 120 counts of child molestation and related alleged crimes. <br>
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York has also been indicted in federal court and charged with four counts of transporting children across state lines for the purposes of illegal sexual activity. He was denied bail on those charges and he remains in federal custody. <br>
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District Attorney Fred Bright said Thursday's indictment was necessary in order to ensure that the state's case is as complete as legally possible. <br>
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``I want the trial jury to hear the whole scope of the child molestation that happened here in Putnam County,'' Bright said. <br>
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Defense attorneys have filed a motion for a change of venue for the trial, and Bright said he will not oppose it.
