Assaults and Sexual Crimes 07/16/2023
Jul 15, 2023(July 14) Takoma Park Pastor Convicted Of Sexually Assaulting Church Member | Takoma Parl, MD
The pastor of a Takoma Park church has been found guilty of sexually assaulting a member of his congregation under the guise of providing a healing massage for her injured ankle.
Erick Odir Vidal-Fuentes, 39, of Hyattsville, is the pastor at the Iglesia Pentecostal El Fin Viene in the 7500 block of New Hampshire Ave. He was convicted Tuesday of second-degree rape and fourth-degree sex offense by Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Karla Smith.
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(July 14) Lawsuit Says Pastor Behind ‘Regular And Repeated’ Sex Abuse At Church, School In Fresno | CA
A former student of a Christian school in Fresno filed a lawsuit alleging a church leader kissed her forcibly and made her touch him sexually when she was 14, the Fresno Bee has learned.
The girl identified only as “Jane Roe,” who is now older than 40, says the abuse started when she was 14 and a student at Truth Tabernacle Christian School in Fresno, the lawsuit says.
Court documents named the church, the United Pentecostal Church International, and Galen Gregg, a former church pastor who also was a teacher and administrator at the school.
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(July 13) Former North Shore Priest Accused Of Child Molestation Changes Plea To Guilty; Sentenced To Prison | Slidell, LA
District Attorney Warren Montgomery announced that former Slidell priest, Patrick Brian Wattigny, has pleaded guilty to two counts of molestation of a juvenile on Wednesday (July 12).
District Judge John Keller presided over the case and sentenced Wattigny to 15 years in prison for each count. The sentences will run concurrently, with 10 years suspended.
In addition to the prison term, Wattigny was sentenced to another five years of probation, sex offender registration and notification, and a “no contact” order concerning the victims.
The District Attorney’s Office did not agree to any concessions, and the Court had sole discretion in determining the sentence.
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(July 12) Trial Begins For Virginia Pastor Charged With Sexually Assaulting Woman At Manassas Church | Manassas, VA
The trial for a Virginia pastor accused of sexually assaulting a woman at a Manassas church during counseling sessions began Wednesday in a Prince William County courtroom.
Authorities say the assaults happened in March 2022 at the Reconciliation Community Church on Joplin Road.
The church’s pastor, then 76-year-old John Roger Peyton, was accused of inappropriately touching a 20-year-old woman who had come to the church for one-on-one counseling sessions.
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(July 9) 5 Members Of Jehovah’s Witnesses Congregations Charged With Child Sexual Abuse In Pennsylvania
Five members of Jehovah’s Witnesses congregations were charged with child sexual abuse by the Pennsylvania’s attorney general on Friday, following a yearslong investigation into allegations of sexual abuse in the religious community.
The children were all also members of Jehovah’s Witnesses congregations, and the alleged abusers gained access to – and the trust of the victims – through the organization, authorities said.
The cases include alleged sexual abuse of 4-year-old child and a developmentally disabled victim.
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