CHESTER A. MAST | Amish Tried to Heal Accused Child Molester Before Turning Him In | Imprisoned for sexually assaulting at least six girls between the ages of 5 and 15 | Sentenced to 15y of initial confinement and 10y of extended supervision | Handwritten

Chester Mast. Handwritten ALS. Commercial #10 (4.125” x 9.5”) envelope. Pmk: February 1, 2016. Content unknown. Pristine.

Repeated Sexual Assault Of A Child – Article 1 (no date)

Chester Mast, (b. April 21, 1984 | age 39; hereinafter referred to as “Chester”, of Curryville in northeast Missouri, stood trial on charges that he raped a girl younger than 17 and masturbated in front of another younger than 15. Chester also faced sexual misconduct charges in Wisconsin and was tried in that state following his Missouri court case.

According to the Hannibal Courier-Post, three of the Chester's alleged victims were Amish members of Pike County, Mo., Amish community, an “Old Order Amish” community that shuns such amenities as electricity, phones and cars; and one had a family relationship with Chester that was “closer than a second cousin”.

At the time of his arrest, Chester remained in jail in Pike County on a $100,000 cash-only bond. If convicted in Missouri and Wisconsin, he could get up to 90 years in prison.ⁱ

Sexual Offenses Involving Minor Girls – Article 2 (2010)

CURRYVILLE, Mo. A troubled young man from this remote stretch of eastern Missouri, Chester Mast had traveled north in the summer of 2004 to stay with his extended family in Wisconsin. Chester, a member of a conservative Amish community here that eschews conveniences like electricity and telephones, was meant to apprentice with his uncle, a carpenter.

His uncle opened his home to the young man but, according to court documents, soon began having doubts about Chester. The uncle later told investigators that while traveling in Michigan he had observed his nephew, then 20, place his arm around his 13-year-old daughter. In the evenings back in Wisconsin, Chester and his cousins would open the windows and play cards in his bedroom. And it was there, investigators allege, that as the frogs croaked one summer night, the girl complained of a pain in her stomach.

“Chester convinced her that he could take her stomachache away,” James Small, a detective with the Waushara County Sheriff’s Department, reported in Wisconsin court filings. He asked her to lie on his stomach, the probable cause statement said. “She recalled being on top of him in his bedroom and that he ultimately penetrated her.”

These are but a few of the accusations that Chester, now 39, faced in a pair of sexual-assault cases that stretch between two states. The criminal charges, a rarity for a religious congregation that often resolves its disputes internally, offer an unusual glimpse into an Amish community in crisis. They have also laid bare the fault lines that divide this insular society that resides some 95 miles northwest of St. Louis.

Chester, who is married with two children and, at the time, had another on the way, stood accused in Wisconsin of incest and the repeated sexual assault of a minor. Meanwhile, officials in MO had charged him with two counts each of statutory rape and sodomy and one count of sexual misconduct involving a child. Investigators claim that Chester had victimized at least six girls, ages 5 to 15—including some outside the Amish community—over the last 10 years.

“There is still the thought that there are other victims out there,” said Sergeant Flynn, the lead investigator in Missouri.

Chester, who last week pleaded not guilty to the charges here, declined an interview request. He was jailed on a $100,000 bond in Pike County, where his trial was set to begin on Dec. 15, 2010.

Community members say that in an effort to cure Chester of his affliction, they excommunicated him on three occasions: in 2004 when he returned from Wisconsin amid accusations that he had raped his cousin; and again in 2009, when new revelations surfaced of his alleged sexual misconduct. The third excommunication came this year, when after a tortuous internal debate, the community appealed to law enforcement.

“We seen this coming for years,” said Noah Schwartz, another of Chester’s uncles. “The church worked desperately to get behind him, but it was a lost cause. I don’t think we realized the seriousness of the crimes.”

Community members described Chester as unsettled and spoiled. They say he talked a lot, was a teller of tall tales who longed to fit in, but who nevertheless experimented with alcohol, could not keep a job and had repeatedly threatened suicide.

“I felt he was never really converted and born again,” said David Eicher, echoing the sentiment of many here. “Maybe that was the base of his problems. But anyone would welcome him back to the church if he would repent and be honest.”

Donald B. Kraybill, a professor at Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania, said that instead of viewing psychological problems as a form of psychosis or addiction, the Amish often see them as a sign of spiritual failing.

“Some Amish communities aren’t fully aware that a psychological disorder may be underlying devious behavior,” said Professor Kraybill, who has written many books on the Amish. “They may sometimes confuse this kind of an addiction like an alcohol addiction or a sexual addiction with a spiritual or moral weakness. They think that if the person confesses the sin, and we bring them back into the church, and they pray about it, everything is going to be O.K.”

Community members say they find it particularly galling, then, that Chester has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. They say he has confessed his sins to them as part of his ritual reconciliation with the church, and that so long as he maintains his innocence, he is not Amish.

“Chester is lying, and that’s worse than the sex crimes, because no sin is so bad that you can’t recognize it and take total responsibility,” said Mr. Schwartz, 60, as he traveled by horse-and-buggy to buy milk from a neighbor. “We’re concerned that Chester is honest, not how many years he gets. If he lies and gets out of prison, then he’s still a prisoner to his own self.”

“Telling the truth and being honest is a fundamental virtue of Amish faith, and he is directly violating the teachings of Jesus if he is lying,” Professor Kraybill said. “That’s a very serious moral offense for them.

The elders’ visits came to an abrupt end recently when Chester’s public defender, Lisa Morrow, prohibited them. Ms. Morrow says she banned the elders after learning they had been sharing important information about the case.

“The legal system doesn’t care about your religious beliefs,” she said. “When it comes to time in prison, I have to look out for my client.”

Her decision has rankled many Amish, who say that by persuading Chester to plead not guilty, Ms. Morrow is endangering him.

“The public defender is no help to him,” said Mr. Wagler, 38, while taking a break from baling hay in his barn. “She’s keeping him from being honest. If he’s going to act like this and not admit it in court, he’s still going to have to answer to God.”ⁱⁱ

Archiving Protocol:

• Handled with White Gloves ab initio
• Photo Pages/Sheet Protectors: Heavyweight Clear Sheet Protectors, Acid Free & Archival Safe, 8.5” x 11”, Top Load
• White Backing Board – Acid Free

Shipping/Packaging: Rigid Mailer 9.5” x 12.5”. White, self seal, stay flat, kraft cardboard, no bend. Each rigid mailer is made of heavy cardboard, which has strong resistance to bending and tearing. Thicker that the USPS mailers. Shipping cost never more than it absolutely has to be to get it from me to you.