MCARTHUR, Ohio — A Vinton County grand jury on Friday indicted seven people in three separate child sexual abuse and endangerment investigations, including formal charges against a Hamden couple and two relatives already accused of keeping 16 children in unsafe conditions inside their home.
Vinton County Prosecutor William Archer, Vinton County Sheriff Ryan Cain and Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson announced the indictments, which stem from investigations by the Vinton County Sheriff’s Office and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation’s Special Victims Unit. The Vinton County Prosecutor’s Office is handling the cases with assistance from the Highland County Prosecutor’s Office and the attorney general’s Special Prosecutions Section.
In the first case, BCI opened an investigation in December 2025 at the sheriff’s office’s request into allegations of sexual abuse involving two children. The investigation led to indictments against two South Bloomingville men. Josh Saunders, 23, was indicted on three counts of first-degree felony rape and one count of third-degree felony gross sexual imposition. Brandon Henderson Sr., 40, was indicted on 21 charges, including one second-degree felony and two third-degree felony counts of endangering children, four third-degree and four fourth-degree felony counts of gross sexual imposition, eight fourth-degree felony counts of sexual battery, and two first-degree misdemeanor counts of endangering children. Both men were arrested Friday without incident by the Vinton and Ross County sheriff’s offices and BCI, according to the attorney general’s office.
Information from that investigation led BCI to open a second inquiry in March into allegations of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor. Investigators executed a search warrant June 30 at a home on Ohmer Street in Hamden, resulting in indictments against Gary Siders Jr., 36, and his wife, Elizabeth Siders, 33, each on two counts of third-degree felony sexual battery and two counts of third-degree felony unlawful sexual conduct with a minor. The indictments allege the pair engaged in sexual conduct between January and September 2022 with a minor more than 10 years younger than themselves who was not a member of their immediate family, the attorney general’s office said.
That same Ohmer Street search is what led investigators to the 16 children the sheriff’s office said were living in unsafe conditions, prompting a third indictment on child-endangerment charges the grand jury alleges caused the children serious physical harm. Gary Siders Jr. and Elizabeth Siders, the children’s parents, were each indicted on 19 counts — two second-degree felony, 10 third-degree felony and seven first-degree misdemeanor counts of endangering children. Gary Siders Sr., 73, the children’s paternal grandfather, was indicted on 16 counts, and Christina Siders, 68, the children’s paternal grandmother, was indicted on 19 counts on the same charges. The attorney general’s office said some counts were charged in the alternative, meaning multiple legal theories were applied to the same alleged acts to allow for a fuller presentation of evidence to a court and jury.
The four family members were arraigned in July, when they pleaded not guilty to earlier charges stemming from the same case.
Wilson said in a statement that the indictments mark a new stage in investigations that remain active. “These indictments are the latest developments in the ongoing investigations, but our work is far from complete,” Wilson said. “BCI is actively investigating these cases alongside the Vinton County Sheriff’s Office, and my office will continue to support Prosecuting Attorney William Archer as the legal process continues.”
Suspects are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
The information contained in this story was obtained from the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.
