FBI: Maryland Baptist Youth Pastor Solicited Child Porn

The Independent reports:

A 34-year-old youth pastor in Virginia is facing federal charges over allegations he posed as a teenage boy to exchange nude photos and videos with young girls, telling one of them last month that it was “time for her to see her first d**k,” according to an FBI probable cause affidavit. Throughout the conversation, Jacob Ryan Barnett – who is known as Pastor Jake to parishioners – “repeatedly asked” the youngster for pictures of her crotch, the affidavit states.

On at least two occasions, it says Barnett messaged with the teen while speaking to his wife on the phone, at one point receiving a clip of the girl’s exposed genitalia she had filmed at the age of 14. Barnett is the Associate Pastor of Students & Mobilization at the Catawba Valley Baptist Church. He previously served for five years as the head of the children’s ministry at the Bethel Baptist Church in Yorktown, Virginia.

Read the full article. His church bio is below.

Late yesterday, FBI Richmond, with assistance from @FBICharlotte and local law enforcement partners, arrested Jacob Ryan Barnett of Catawba, VA for soliciting sexual material from children. We know this is what keeps parents up at night, and as Acting Special Agent in Charge Ann… pic.twitter.com/7jgQJXagV0

— FBI Richmond (@FBIRichmond) August 7, 2025