Philadelphia Pastor Gets Five Years For Child Rape

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports:

Montgomery County Court Judge Thomas Branca told the Rev. Mark Hatcher that two versions of the North Philadelphia pastor had been presented in his courtroom Thursday.

One was an active, beloved community leader who helped countless people through his ministry at Holy Ghost Headquarters Revivalist Center. The other was a serial predator who used that authority to rape a teenage congregant and sexually assault two children he was related to.

That dichotomy led Branca to sentence Hatcher, 61, to five years and three months to 12 years in state prison after a crowded hearing in Norristown filled with dozens of the pastor’s supporters, including former Philadelphia Mayor Wilson Goode.

Read the full article.

BREAKING – Pastor Mark Hatcher Sr., 61, of Whitpain, Pa., was sentenced to 5 yrs and 3 months to 12 years in prison for sexually assaulting 3 children at locations in #MontcoPa & Philadelphia pic.twitter.com/NZ6Fbnn030

— Carl Hessler Jr. (@MontcoCourtNews) August 8, 2024