Investigators hail input on church raid

INDEPENDENCE, Mo. -- The Jackson County Sheriff's Office says anonymous responses to news stories posted on the Internet are painting an accurate picture of what investigators are seeking at a small Independence church, where guns, cash and documents were seized during a raid Monday.

But the lawyer for the church official at the center of the probe calls the raid and the investigation a publicity stunt.

"This is what you get with an unprofessional sheriff's department," said John Carnes, an attorney for the Rev. Lloyd Sartain, pastor of New Covenant Faith Church. "These guys are just running around trying to get publicity. They haven't found anything."

Investigators have been at the church and a nearby home since Monday night, when they took Sartain into custody on suspicion of being a felon in possession of a firearm. No charges have been filed against Sartain, but he has not been allowed to return to the house or the church since the raid.

The search warrant that prompted the raid has been sealed by a Jackson County judge, but a sheriff's spokesman said Wednesday many of the details about the case have been depicted accurately on the websites of Kansas City media outlets.

"Two out-of-staters in particular hit on stuff we already knew and hadn't been released," Col. Ben Kenney said. "They are hitting the nail on the head, and that's what we were hoping to see."

Those comments include claims of child molestation and other types of physical and emotional abuse that supposedly occurred on or near the church's property. One poster claimed the abuse he suffered as a child at the church made him contemplate suicide.

The church is on a well-traveled county road just north of Independence. Sartain's home is about 100 yards south of the church, and nestled between the buildings are a fenced-in playground and the dock for a train that carries children around the property.

Carnes said Sartain owns "three or four" houses on land adjacent to the church property.

Investigators served a search warrant Wednesday afternoon at one of those homes, but Kenney declined to provide details on that search. Meanwhile, evidence seized from the church and Sartain's home was being loaded onto a truck.

Kenney said the investigation has gone on for about a year, prompted by a tip, but an interview Saturday led to Monday's raid. He said officers are seeking information going as far back as 30 years about activities at the church.

On Tuesday, Kenney urged people who had been affiliated with the church to come forward with any information regarding possible child abuse or any inappropriate use of church funds.

By Wednesday, more than 100 anonymous responses to news stories were posted on local media websites.

Kenney said investigators are trying to contact people who have posted claims online about the church, and if necessary the Sheriff's office will file subpoenas to obtain their e-mail addresses.

Carnes said the sheriff's office is grasping at straws if its best evidence is coming from anonymous Internet postings.

"The sheriff's office refers to the church as a cult," Carnes said. "If there's a cult, it's a cult of incompetence at the Sheriff's office."

He said any complaints to law enforcement have come from dissociated church members and dissatisfied parishioners, and form no basis for the action against Sartain.

"This will be a massive lawsuit," Carnes said. "I'm afraid this will cost the taxpayers dearly."