Larry “Mike” Thorne, pastor of Abundant Life Church in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, was sentenced yesterday to thirty years in prison for repeatedly sexually molesting a church teenager. Prior to sentencing, the court heard from two previous victims of Thorne’s predatory behavior.
NWF Daily News reports:
The former pastor of a local church was sentenced Thursday to 30 years in state prison and a lifetime designation as a sexual offender by Judge William F. Stone.
Larry Michael Thorne had been found guilty earlier this summer of lewd and lascivious battery on a victim between the ages of 12 and 18 and sexual battery on a victim in the same age range, according to a press release from the First Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s Office.
Thorne was arrested Nov. 14, 2014 after the victim reported that he’d had sexual contact with her on numerous occasions. The abuse started when she was 14 and ended when she was 17, according to news accounts.
The sexual molestation included sexual intercourse. These criminal acts occurred repeatedly in Thorne’s home in Fort Walton Beach.
The sexual abuse stopped only when the child disclosed it to a pastor at the church she began attending after she had been able to distance herself from the defendant.
The jury also heard evidence from two earlier victims who had been subject to the same pattern of conduct and sexual molestation when they were in their teens.
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Astoundingly, Thorne is still listed as Abundant Life’s pastor on their website:
Pastor Mike Thorne began his ministry in 1985 as a Youth Pastor He is the eldest of two sons born to Bishop LM and June Thorne, founders of Abundant Life Church (ALC) Fort Walton Beach, FL. Mike has a teenage daughter, Lindsey, who is the light of his life. He has been in full time ministry for the past 25 years. For nine of those years he served as youth pastor. He was made an associate pastor and was involved in the missions programs of ALC and Evangel Fellowship International. He has traveled to Russia, Cuba, Romania, Hungary, Belgium and South Africa on mission trips. He has an AA degree from Christian Life School of Theology and continues his Bible studies today. Mike has a heart for evangelism, spiritual growth and building families.
God desires to see the Emerald Coast set on fire for His glory and Pastor Mike wants to seize that fire for the people on the Emerald coast.As Pastor at ALC, he sees the vision of the Church moving towards the future with a boldness and purpose for each family member of ALC. It is a deep desire of the entire ALC family to experience every blessing, every gift and every powerful move of God’s spirit.
