Tag Archives: Youth Pastor

The Yakima Herald-Republic reports: Prosecutors charged an Outlook youth pastor with raping a teenage girl he knew. In addition to five charges each of second-degree rape and third-degree child molestation, Benjamin Felix Guerra, 32, was also charged with three counts of third-degree child rape and a single count of communicating with a minor for immoral purposes, according to a six-page …

Law & Crime reports: A youth pastor in Kansas will spend nearly three decades behind bars for stabbing his wife and kids because the family was going to be evicted from their home due to his piling debt. District Judge Jason B. Billam sentenced 42-year-old Matthew Lee Richards on Wednesday to 188 months in prison for one count of attempted …

Denver’s Fox affiliate reports: A pastor employed by Word Alive Church was arrested Tuesday after reported incidents of sexual assault on juveniles while he was a youth pastor there. Joshua Lucero, 28, was charged with one count of sexual assault on a child by one in a position of trust by the 17th Judicial District Attorney’s Office. The Thornton Police …

Jefferson City’s KJLU reports: A former church youth ministry volunteer in Phelps County pleaded guilty in federal court to a child pornography offense. Bradley Colvin, 52, of Rolla, was arrested last March following a Missouri State Highway Patrol investigation into online child pornography. Colvin was identified as a suspect after he shared child pornography online with a person who was …

Atlanta First News reports: A youth pastor at an Alpharetta church was arrested Wednesday on several child pornography charges. Daniel Menelaou was charged with six counts of possession or control of any material depicting a minor in sexually explicit conduct. The charges stem from several sexually explicit videos involving children being shared through a messaging app, arrest warrants state. Arrest …

The Denver Gazette reports: Stephen Hutto, 45, was booked into the El Paso County jail and facing a felony charge for sexual assault on a child by one in a position of trust. He is currently the pastor at Highland Baptist Church in Boone, east of Pueblo, and previously worked as a youth pastor at Fountain Independent Baptist Church in …

Michigan Live reports: A former church leader will stand trial on 60 charges related to sexual abuse after a Washtenaw County judge added 30 more counts based on preliminary testimony. Supporters of the eight men and one boy who testified against Zachary Radcliff, 29, could be heard crying in the courtroom as Judge J. Cedric Simpson read off the additional charges. …

Little Rock’s NBC affiliate reports: Andrew Apple, who later became a youth staff member at a Northwest Arkansas church, is accused of sexually abusing at least two underage victims over several years, according to court documents. The first victim, whose identity was redacted, reported that the abuse started when they were around 13 years old while volunteering with Apple at …

Grand Rapids’ ABC affiliate reports: A Muskegon County church leader, who attorneys say held a “secret obsession” with child pornography, learned how long he’ll spend in jail. Daniel Byron DeVries of Fruitport Township was sentenced to 4 to 10 years in prison Wednesday. DeVries was arrested back in March. He originally faced six felony counts, but pleaded guilty to two: …

Houston’s ABC affiliate reports: Forty-two year-old Lance Hoffpauir was arrested right near his home, and he was accused of sending x-rated messages to an undercover officer, who he thought was an underage girl. “He was asking for pictures, sending a bunch of different things, and asking a bunch of different stuff we met the elements to charge him with online …

The Tupelo Daily Journal reports: A former east Tupelo youth pastor will spend the next decade in prison after admitting in court that he had sex multiple times with a 16-year-old church member. Alexander Ryan Blackwelder, 28, was the youth pastor at East Main Street Church of Christ in early 2023 when authorities received a tip that he was having …

Montgomery’s ABC affiliate reports: A former Troy church volunteer accused of possessing child porn has reportedly taken his own life. Samuel McCall was arrested on Wednesday, January 29, and charged with one count Possession of Child Pornography with Intent to Disseminate. He was released from the Pike County Jail on a $25,000 bond. According to Pike County Sheriff Russell Thomas, …

Kansas City’s NBC affiliate reports: A former Shawnee, Kansas, children’s pastor who attacked his family and set their house on fire to hide financial problems has pleaded guilty in connection with the incident. Matthew Lee Richards was charged with five counts of attempted murder and one count of aggravated arson with risk of bodily harm after the Sept. 16, 2023, …

Memphis’s NBC affiliate reports: A Bartlett man is behind bars indicted on rape charges. John Miller, a former youth volunteer at Hope Church, is charged with rape of a child—a class-A felony. According to the indictment, the crime allegedly occurred in 2006; the case was presented to a grand jury last month. Hope Church says all its volunteers must undergo repeated …

Montgomery’s ABC affiliate reports: A local youth group volunteer from Troy was arrested last month on child pornography charges. Pike County District Attorney James Tarbox says Samuel Andrew McCall was arrested on Wednesday, January 29, and charged with one count of Possession of Child Pornography with Intent to Disseminate. McCall was arrested by state agents after an investigation with the …

Jackson, Tennessee’s ABC affiliate reports: 40-year-old Ryan Kelley McElrath is charged with statutory rape by an authority figure, sexual battery by an authority figure, and aggravated statutory rape. The charges stem from a May 2024 incident that occurred at Fellowship Bible Church in Jackson. McElrath was working as a youth pastor at the church at the time. Records show that …

Michigan Live reports: A former youth pastor charged with more than 30 felonies for sexually abusing children will stay in jail. Washtenaw County District Court Judge J. Cedric Simpson denied Zachary Joseph Radcliff’s bond after hearing from prosecutors how the 29-year-old temporarily fled to Virginia during the ongoing investigation and repeatedly contacted a victim who came forward. This means, absent …

Bakersfield’s CBS affiliate reports: A 41-year-old Tehachapi youth pastor was arrested Monday following an investigation that revealed an alleged sexual assault of a teen victim. On January 27, 2025, Tehachapi police arrested Adrian Daugherty, 41, following an investigation that alleges Daugherty committed lewd and lascivious acts with a minor. Daugherty is a youth pastor at the Tehachapi Church of the …

Duluth’s Fox affiliate reports: While the criminal cases against former Duluth Vineyard youth pastor Jackson Gatlin were prevented by a plea deal, new lawsuits aim to discover how sexual abuse within the church went overlooked for so long. On Nov. 6, Jackson Gatlin pled guilty to five counts of Criminal Sexual Conduct with a child. Gatlin received a 13-year sentence …

The Tallahassee Democrat reports: The Leon County Sheriff’s Office arrested a church employee for allegedly assaulting a teenager who attended the church he served at. Hunter Eubanks, 30, was arrested Wednesday on charges of sexual assault of a minor, cruelty toward a child, aggravated battery on a child, use of a computer to lure a child, obscene communication and travel …