MN Pastor Charged With Sexual Abuse Of Parishioners

September 10, 2022 Christianists, Crime

The Roys Report reports:

The longtime pastor of a Minnesota church retired in February. Now, he’s charged with criminal sexual conduct against two women in his former church, a criminal complaint shows.

Bruce Douglas Konold pastored Eagan Hills Church, a Christian & Missionary Alliance (C&MA) congregation in the Twin Cities area, from 1997 until this past February. Authorities allege in the criminal complaint, first reported by the St. Paul Pioneer-Press, that Konold had numerous sexual encounters with two congregants.

One of the alleged victims told police that Konold offered her a job as his personal assistant, the complaint states. Then, Konold reportedly started pushing the woman to have sex with him—and begging her not to tell his elders.

The Lakeville Sun reports:

Konold was arrested Sept. 2 on a warrant. He made his first court appearance in Hastings and was charged with third-degree criminal sexual conduct and harassment, a pattern of stalking conduct. The criminal complaint states a 20-year-old female reported that Konold engaged in sexual behavior with her at his Eagan home starting in May 2021.

It is a felony in Minnesota for a clergy member to conduct a sexual relationship with any person they provide spiritual advice to or whom they offer counseling to within the church. The complaint alleges that Konold’s wife told the woman in December 2021 to never show her face at the church again and to disappear completely.

The complaint stated Konold had been leaving the 20-year-old notes, texting her constantly and he had begun making threats of suicide in an attempt to manipulate the woman.

The Minnesota Patch reports:

During the woman’s college break, Konold invited her to stay at his house, according to investigators. He gave her several alcoholic drinks, police said. She was underage and had never drunk alcohol before, according to the criminal complaint.

Konold followed her into her bedroom and tried to get her clothes off, but he eventually stopped, police said. Later that year, Konold began “regularly engaging in sex acts” with the woman, who said “certain incidents that didn’t feel consensual,” according to the criminal complaint.

After the acts began, Konold would often talk of suicide and carried his gun with him, police said. At one point, told the woman, “what if we both just died and that would take care of it,” investigators said.

The Pioneer Press reports:



In a March interview with police, Konold said he had sexual relations with the woman about 15 times. He expressed concerns about the church supporting her mission work, saying that “it was not right that they continue to support an adulteress,” the complaint read. He “quoted a bible verse regarding adulterous women being ‘stoned.’”

Konold described his relationship with the 20-year-old woman as “another adulterous relationship,” the complaint said.

Konold did not directly answer the question from an investigator of whether he considered her as someone seeking spiritual counseling, but said she thought of him as a father figure and “explained that his conversations are spiritual given that he is considered one of the foremost experts in world religions,” according to the complaint.

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