Child services are now investigating and June could risk losing her family

Sugar Bear KNEW about his wife's relationship with McDaniel but chose to ignore it, reports claim

McDaniel abused June's eldest daughter Anna when she was just eight

Mama June exposed nine-year-old daughter Alana - also known as Honey Boo Boo - to convicted child molester Mark McDaniel just last month

Honey Boo Boo's family is being investigated by Child Protective Services in Georgia after Mama June reportedly started dating a convicted sex offender accused of abusing one of her daughters.

CPS formally opened an investigation to determine if any crimes have been committed against June Shannon's youngest children - Lauryn 'Pumpkin' Shannon, 14, Jessica 'Chubbs', 17, and nine-year-old Alana, also known as Honey Boo Boo - after calls from the public, according to RadarOnline.

Mama June has been spotted with child molester Mark McDaniel, and he was pictured with Alana just last month, according to photos obtained by TMZ. Another of June's children, 20-year-old Anna, has claimed that McDaniel sexually assaulted her when she was younger.

'Social workers will be making formal contact with all of June’s children, and any other minors that might have come into contact with Mark McDaniel,' a CPS source told Radar.

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Risk: TMZ have now reported that Mama June - pictured here on Friday October 24 - exposed daughter Alana, nine, to convicted child molester Mark McDaniel just last month

What's next? Mama June denied letting her daughter meet with McDaniel - but photos show them together

'This is being taken very, very seriously by the department.'

A spokesperson for the agency could not confirm the reports, citing privacy laws.

This weekend, TMZ shared an image, taken on September 9, showing 53-year-old McDaniel gently touching Alana on the shoulder as they sit on a staircase together with June.

Alana is just a year older than when June's eldest daughter Anna 'Chickadee' Cardwell - who is now 20-years-old - claims she was abused by McDaniel.

June's daughter Anna Cardwell told Radar on Friday that her mother's sex offender ex-boyfriend McDaniel molested her when she was just eight.

She told Radar: 'I believe she is seeing him and hanging around him. I'm hurt.'

McDaniel was released from prison in Georgia earlier this year after serving 10 years behind bars for aggravated child molestation. Anna said she was the victim in that case, USA Today reported.

June's alleged relationship with the convicted sex offender has led to the cancellation of popular TLC reality show Here Comes Honey Boo Boo.

Just released: Mark was released from prison last month after being jailed for 10 years for molesting an unnamed eight-year-old relative of then-girlfriend Mama June's

'You can't believe everything you read': The cancellation came after 'Mama June' Shannon reportedly began dating convicted sex offender Mark McDaniel - allegedly pictured here in a hotel room last month

Registered: McDaniel's crime is public record on the Georgian sex offender registry, as part of his release requires him to keep authorities constantly updated on his whereabouts

After Mama June and McDaniel's relationship emerged, TMZ revealed June's husband Mike 'Sugar Bear' Thompson had been aware of the relationship but chose to ignore it.

June kept 'a box of photos' of McDaniel in the house - but even when Sugar Bear told her to get rid of them, she wouldn't, TMZ reported.

The report added that she began seeing McDaniel again after he was released from prison in March.

It had previously been reported that it was Sugar Bear who had been cheating on June using on-line dating sites, but now TMZ claims it was actually June who was having an affair, and used the story about Sugar Bear's infidelity to end her relationship with him.

Support: McDaniel's daughter-in-law Peaches McDaniel, pictured left and right with his son, has voiced her support for her father-in-law online, calling him an 'amazing man' and an 'amazing father'

Concerns: Her daughter was born in July. She shared this picture online showing McDaniel holding the girl

The revelation comes after a report in People hints that June now faces losing her children to child services.

Susan Boatwright of Georgia's Division of Family and Child Services told People: 'From our point of view, when there are young children who are not able to protect themselves that are in daily contact or living with a sex offender, someone would go out and assess the situation and decide whether the children can stay there or not.'

She added: 'If we thought a child was in harm's way in any way, shape or form, we would develop a safety plan and make sure the children are not around an offender.'

Despite the startling revelations about McDaniel's past, his daughter-in-law Peaches McDaniel has defended him on Facebook, insisting he's a good father.

Out and about: Honey Boo Boo is pictured visiting a local gas station in McIntyre, Georgia on Monday as speculation continues about how much contact the youngster has had with her mother's boyfriend

Trip: Honey Boo Boo stepped out with her big sister, Lauryn 'Pumpkin' Shannon, amid the controversy

'If you are going to judge someone by their past, look at your own first,' she wrote, TMZ reported.

'Michaels dad is an amazing man, as well amazing father... Peoples past are completely irrelevant to the present.'

She also shares images online of McDaniel holding her own child.

Mama June has protested her innocence, saying that she hadn't seen McDaniel in 10 years, but TMZ reported over the weekend that she had been in fact been seen house-hunting with him in Georgia.

She was joined on the home-shopping expedition last month by daughter Lauryn 'Pumpkin' Shannon and McDaniel's son, TMZ claimed.

Speaking out: June posted a video on Friday confirming the cancellation of Here Comes Honey Boo Boo

Another picture showed the group walking up towards the entrance of the two-story brown brick, gable-roofed mansion.

Pumpkin, who stuck up for her mom by saying June had not been with McDaniel after he got out of prison, was also pictured looking chummy with McDaniel's son during outing.

McDaniel was released in March after serving a 10-year prison service for 'forcing a girl to perform oral sex on him' according to TMZ.

Radar report that Anna said she was abused by McDaniel, 53, in 2002 and 2003.

He was indicted in June 2003 for 'aggravated child molestation and aggravated sexual battery on his young victim' which Radar now reports was Anna.

The case was dismissed some time later, however, McDaniel was then convicted on aggravated child molestation charges in a different case in Spalding County.

It's over: Here Comes Honey Boo Boo was cancelled by TLC on Friday

Shock new claim: Mama June's sex offender ex-boyfriend molested her own daughter Anna 'Chickadee' Cardwell (pictured above) who spoke about the incident on Friday

Dinner for one: Sugar Bear is seen getting food on Friday following the shocking revelations about his family

Anna had spoken to Radar to defend her mother (who has strenuously denied dating McDaniel) but appears to have now had a change of heart.

TMZ also reported that Anna feels 'betrayed' by her mother for seeing McDaniel again, and feels that their relationship is now 'destroyed'.

The site claims that TLC - that produced the reality show - have reached out to Anna to offer counselling.

According to TMZ; not only was June secretly dating McDaniel for several months, she also purchased gifts - including a used car - for him.

June allegedly went shopping for the car last month, visiting at least one dealership near her home in McIntyre, Georgia.

The website report that the family matriarch told the dealer the vehicle was for 'her daughter.' But sources say it was, in fact, 'secretly' intended for McDaniel.

Criminal past: In 1998, Sugar Bear was sentenced to five years for robbing a series of campsites and setting fire to at least one camper. The father of Honey Boo Boo’s sister Jessica, Michael Anthony Ford, right, is in prison for the sexual exploitation of a child. He is not expected to be released for another 10 years







