A Republican running for South Dakota state Senate has deleted his social media accounts after a family member stepped forward to say that he groomed her and raped her for years. Joel Koskan, 44, a third-time candidate for the state Senate, is facing felony child abuse charges.
The South Dakota GOP candidate could also face counts of rape, sexual contact with a child under the age of 16, and aggravated incest-related child, according to a probable cause statement obtained by the Mitchell Republic.
Contraception was rarely used, and from what I can tell, Koskan, who describes himself as a Christian, is against abortion exceptions for rape and incest. The grooming of the child began when she was 12 years old. Koskan has five children.
Via the Mitchell Report:
As the woman grew older, she claims Koskan would "require" her to take showers and switch from wearing shorts to a nightgown without underwear. Court documents say Koskan would require her to straddle him after showering, exposing herself to him.
It wasn't until she was 17 years old — roughly three years after the visit from DSS — that the woman claims Koskan penetrated her with fingers for the first time at his home in Wood, South Dakota. The woman said that touching led to sexual intercourse, which took place "many times" in different residences across the state.
Koskan even took control of her social media accounts to isolate her from others. According to the outlet, he also tracked her whereabouts via GPS and camera systems, and Koskan required nightly phone calls from her.
"You promised you'd never do this," Koskan texted her. "I'm begging you, you don't want to do this."
If Koskan is convicted of the charge -- and there appears to be a lot of evidence -- he could face up to 10 years in prison and pay fines of up to $20,000.
