Accused of sexually abusing multiple 5- and 6-year-old girls he had access to in Rawlins, Wyoming, a 33-year-old man faces up to 680 years in prison if convicted.
Tyler Vernon Jessop, who moved to Rawlins from Utah about three years ago, is charged with 28 felonies for allegedly molesting two 5-year-old girls and one 6-year-old girl whom he knew and saw frequently in the town.
His case rose to the felony-level Carbon County District Court earlier this month.
The investigation started May 27, when a woman called police to report that her 5-year-old daughter had disclosed that Jessop had been molesting her and two other girls she knew, according to an evidentiary affidavit filed in the case.
The 5-year-old said Jessop made her do things to his “bump” to make it “go down,” and she made other vivid references to sexual acts such as manual stimulation and oral sex, the affidavit alleges.
The document says the other two girls disclosed when questioned that Jessop would touch their genitalia during multifamily visits at which he had access to them in the kitchen.
Wife’s Red Flags
Jessop’s wife reportedly told police that she was aware before their marriage that he’d been convicted on a child pornography charge back in Utah. She’d also been involved in his probation and rehabilitation, the affidavit says.
One red flag during their marriage surfaced when the wife said she saw Jessop making a suggestive reference about a little girl while chatting on the Whisper app, she said.
Jessop told her at the time that it was just age play with adults, the document adds.
A friend of Jessop’s wife told police that they were in an open or polyamorous relationship, and that the wife would often go out to bars to meet other people or have drinks with a friend while Jessop stayed home.
Attracted To Children
Rawlins Police Department Lt. Daria Hooper interviewed Jessop May 28 one day after his arrest, the affidavit says.
He allegedly told her he’s sexually attracted to children, even when they are as young as a few weeks old.
The document says Jessop detailed for Hooper the ways he has molested a child, including through inappropriate touching, object penetration and oral sex.
He also reportedly admitted to watching child pornography, sharing it with others and receiving it from others. He said he’d delete it from his phone often because he didn’t want to get caught, the affidavit says.
Jessop also told police his wife would “cover” for him by indicating that his past sex offense was for dating her when she was too young, when he was never charged for that.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
