January 10, 2012 – A church is facing some costly repairs from flooding in it’s youth center but it wasn’t rain doing the damage.
Police suspect vandals, and it’s not the first time.
Three break-ins over the past year. Ed Downs is the pastor at First Baptist Church in New Iberia.
“They broke in and got $25 out of our children’s program offering.” Downs says, “they give (that money) to missionaries.”
$25 is all the thieves made off with the first two times. This week, another break-in but they didn’t take money.
“They broke into our youth refuge center and when they broke in, they found no money.” Downs says, “but (they) did vandalism.”
The church’s Youth Director, Jennifer Shores says she woke up Monday morning to find the youth center overflowing with water.
A broken window with a water-hose going through it. Left on overnight, the water reached nine-inches in the youth center.
“We’re here to serve our community, we’re here to serve God and we’ll continue to do that no matter what.” Shores says, “this is just a stone in the road and we just need to jump over that and keep going.”
Police don’t have any suspects but Shores is praying for these break-ins to come to an end. After all, it’s hurting the children the most.
“We love our children no matter what, we love the people no matter what.” Shores says, “we just keep going.”
Posted By rodneypires on January 12, 2012
Category: Church Vandalism, Uncategorized
Tags: Church Vandalism
August 26, WALKER, Mich.— New details about the Walker pastor, Tedd Butler, 46, accused of sex assaults against two young boys. We obtained court documents that tell us Butler sexually abused one victim between the years of 1984-1992. During those years the victim was only between the ages of 3-9.
The court documents indicate he may have been sexually abused as many as 50-60 times.
Ottawa County Sheriff’s deputies started investigating Butler, pastor of Gospel Light Baptist Church since 2003, more than a year ago after a young boy told his parents that Butler had touched him inappropriately when back in 2006. Detectives say the boy went to Bulter’s church and was five years old at the time of the alleged incident.
The led investigators to make hundreds of calls to past churches and church members. They found a 30 year old man, who is now living in a different state. The man said Butler performed sexual acts on him when he was around five years old, back in the late ’80s. Butler was working at Landmark Baptist Church in Algoma back then.
According to detectives, the church used to bus in kids from Grand Rapids for youth programs and that’s where the alleged victim met Butler. He faces first degree criminal sexual conduct for that case in Kent County.
Butler is currently out on $100,000 bond. His attorney and the churches involved were not available for comment.
Butler turned himself in on Wednesday. Butler previously served at churches in Princeville, IL, and in Newaygo, MI. His arraignment for the Kent County case is scheduled for August 31st.
Posted By rodneypires on August 29, 2011
Category: Sexual Assault, Uncategorized
Tags: Sexual Assault
May 14, 2011 – PITTSBURGH — A local pastor is out of the hospital after he was attacked and robbed at his Lawrenceville church on Friday.
Police said the crime happened at Trinity Baptist Church on Ligonier Street. Investigators said the pastor heard someone banging on the door and yelled to see who it was. When the pastor opened the door, police said a man, who was described as black, busted into the church wearing black shorts and a black hooded sweatshirt.
The robber demanded money and after a struggle he threatened to shoot Pastor James Garmon twice, police said. But when he pulled the trigger, the gun jammed. Detectives said the burglar hit the pastor with the barrel of the gun and punched him in the stomach.
“He had the gun to my head and told me to turn over on my stomach, put my hands behind my head and not to move. I don’t know what’s going to happen at this point,” Garmon said. Investigators said the burglar got away with more than $2,000.
Garmon has a swollen jaw along with some cuts and bruises, but he is going to be OK, officials said. So far, no arrests have been made.
Posted By rodneypires on June 7, 2011
Category: Assault, Uncategorized
Tags: Assaults
Saturday 7 May, 2011 – A volunteer at a Texas church home to the largest congregation in the United States has been charged with sexually abusing an autistic child.
Alvaro Daniel Guzman, 25, was charged with indecency with a child over a February 2010 incident at a Lakewood Church activities program for special needs children, according to local media reports in Houston. The arrest warrant was issued on Tuesday but Guzman is still free.
Lakewood is a Protestant “megachurch” run by pastor Joel Osteen, whose weekend services draw more than 40,000 people. Osteen’s television ministry is broadcast in dozens of countries.
Guzman allegedly fondled an 8-year-old autistic boy while he helped him climb into a play structure. Another adult volunteer allegedly witnessed the event and reported it to church officials and authorities.
The arrest warrant was issued this week. As of Saturday, Guzman was not in custody, according to the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.
Lakewood Church, in a statement posted on its web site, said Guzman was “immediately removed” from volunteer services and that state authorities were “notified immediately.”
Posted By rodneypires on May 9, 2011
Category: Sex Crimes, Sexual Assault, Uncategorized
Tags: Sex Crimes, Sexual Assault
April 14, 2011 – Police officers have arrested a man who allegedly sexually assaulted a girl for nearly three years while volunteering at Springs Community Church from the late 1990s through 2008. Police said the girl was 16 years old when 37-year-old Eric Caverly allegedly began sexually assaulting her. Caverly was a youth leader to the middle school ministry.
According to an arrest affidavit the church is where he first met the girl. He formed a friendship with the victim, and she frequently spent the night at the Caverly home. Caverly and the victim started “fooling around” when she was 16. Documents state he would take her hand and place it in his pants. Caverly and the teen first had sex when she was 17 years old.
Eric Caverly / Courtesy: Colorado Springs Police Department
The arrest is the result of a sexual assault report taken back in December, three years after the first assaults allegedly began.
Posted By rodneypires on April 18, 2011
Category: Sexual Assault, Uncategorized
Tags: Sexual Assault
April 17, 2011 – Parishioners at St. John Vianney Church in Hacienda Heights mourn the destruction of the building by an arsonist. Federal and L.A. County investigators are looking into the blaze. St. John Vianney Church destroyed by an arsonist’s fire. Witness reported that the saw flames shooting 150 feet in the air and helplessly watching flames destroy the church and the rectory. The FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are investigating the fire along with L.A. County authorities. Church leaders vowed to rebuild the church, which they said could cost $10 million and take two to three years.
Posted By rodneypires on April 18, 2011
Category: Uncategorized
Tags:
December 11 2010 – 
The victim of sex abuse at the hands of a former pastor of a Norfolk church has spoken of finally being able to have closure on her ordeal after he was jailed for two years and placed on the sex offenders’ register for 10 years.
Posted By rodneypires on December 14, 2010
Category: Sex Crimes, Uncategorized
Tags: Sex Crimes
An argument that began at an Oklahoma City church resulted in a shooting that has left at least one person dead and five others injured.
It happened Wednesday night outside the Word of God Church in northwest Oklahoma City. Police say there was a dispute between two groups and that as people were walking away, one person began shooting.
The bullets struck 31-year-old Darnell Marzett as well as five others — four young girls and a 32-year-old woman.Marzett later died at an Oklahoma City hospital. The wounds suffered by the other five weren’t thought to be life-threatening.
Seventeen-year-old James Watts has now been booked into the Oklahoma County Jail on complaints of murder and assault with a deadly weapon.
Posted By rodneypires on October 18, 2010
Category: Church Shootings, Uncategorized
Tags: Church Shootings
Attorneys for the Rev. Donald Armstrong and the Pueblo District Attorney’s office were pleased Monday with the plea agreement in the criminal case involving the former rector of Grace and St. Stephen’s Church in Colorado Springs.
A Fourth Judicial District grand jury indicted Armstrong in May 2009 on 20 felony counts of embezzling $392,000 from Grace Church. Armstrong on Friday pled no contest to one felony count, according to El Paso County court files. Though Armstrong in his plea doesn’t admit guilt, the court views it in a legal sense as a guilty plea.
As part of the agreement, Armstrong admitted guilt to a new charge, misdemeanor theft, said Pueblo District Attorney Bill Thiebaut. A sentencing hearing on this charge will happen before the end of the year.
Armstrong’s sentence could include a fine of up to $5,000 and up to 18 months in the El Paso County Jail. Misdemeanor charges are brought for thefts between $500 and $1,000.
On the felony count, Armstrong has been placed on four-year’s probation. If violated, he will be a convicted felon and could face four to 12 years in prison.
Read more: http://www.gazette.com/articles/armstrong-104949-indicted-don.html#ixzz10qSlMBrw
Posted By rodneypires on September 28, 2010
Category: Church Embezzlement, Uncategorized
Tags: Church Embezzlement
Aug 2100 – Ann Carson secretary for the North Presbyterian Church for over 20 years will spend the next three years in prison for embezzlement of $364,000 of members money. Ann Carson stole more then $85,000 of donations made in memory of loved ones, according to the pastor. Ann Carson was discovered after a church member attempted a financial audit. The external audit showed Ann Carson had been writing checks to herself and falsifying the books.
In addition to the 3 year prison sentence, Ann Carson was sentence includes 15 years of extended supervision and requires her to put a quarter of her earning toward repaying the entire amount of $364,418.12 back to the church. Question: When was your last audit done? If you believe that this can’t happen at your church, then think again! It can and it will without the proper audits and security measures in place. Are you prepared?
Posted By rodneypires on September 15, 2010
Category: Uncategorized
Tags: Church Embezzlement
Older Posts »
