The Bible student who confessed to killing a spiritual leader's wife told police he was acting under the orders of her husband, who told him to make it look like a suicide.

The body of Bethany Deaton, 27, from Kansas City, was found in a van on October 30 with a bag over her head, an empty bottle of pills and a suicide note.

Micah Moore, 23, confessed to murdering Bethany on Friday and said he did it to prevent her from telling her therapist she was being raped by men in their spiritual group. He also said the assaults were recorded on his iPad.

Despite this, he has not been charged with any sexual assault. It is not yet clear if his iPad has been seized

Moore told detectives the prayer group they were in included sex in its religious practices and said the men had sex with each other as well as Bethany.