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Black Collar Crime: Steven Matlak Hosted Bible Studies for Children, Accused of Child Sex Crimes

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steven matlak

Steven Matlak, a Fresno lawyer and active member of First Presbyterian Church in Fresno, California, stands accused of child sex abuse charges.

ABC-30 reports:

A Fresno civil attorney at a large law firm has been arrested on child sex abuse charges for the second time in the last two weeks. Steven Matlak, 40, is now facing multiple felony charges for the alleged crimes.

Sheriff’s deputies won’t say how many victims there are so far but did say the ones they’re aware of who’ve been preyed upon are all between five and 10 years old.

Matlak was not only a lawyer for a Fresno law firm but also an active member of the First Presbyterian Church and is now sitting in jail. Sheriff’s deputies say multiple children have come forward claiming Matlak inappropriately touched them.

“Unfortunately, we come across cases every day where it’s people you put the most trust into and they deceive you,” Tony Botti with the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office said. “And this is a prime example of that.”

Matlak was first arrested on sex abuse charges just two weeks ago after a five-year-old girl came forward saying Matlak touched her and took naked pictures of her. Then one day later, a nine-year-old victim came forward and claiming the same thing.

Matlak was arrested and bailed himself out. Deputies say while he was released, detectives continued investigating.

“They established more victims in the community interviewed them and their families and found out he had taken advantage of others,” Botti said.

And on Thursday, he was rearrested.

The senior pastor of the First Presbyterian Church says Matlak has been a member there since 2009. A flyer on the church’s website shows Matlak even held bible studies at his home for children where they could swim and learn about God.

The church says they’ve already begun ministering to the people who’ve been impacted saying in a statement in part, “Our hope is that the truth is made known and that we can all work together toward restoration and healing.”

….

The Fresno Bee reports:

Sheriff’s detectives say they first got a report on July 27 from a woman who said her 5-year-old daughter had told her Matlak photographed and touched the girl inappropriately while she was naked. Coincidentally, detectives developed information the following day that Matlak had done something similar with a 9-year-old girl, who is not related, said Tony Botti, Fresno County Sheriff’s spokesman.

Matlak was arrested and jailed on July 28 and bailed out the following week.

Following Matlak’s release from jail, detectives continued their investigation and learned he had apparently victimized other children. Detectives interviewed them, then re-arrested Matlak on Thursday on a new set of charges.

Detectives say Matlak knew all of his victims from prior interactions with them and their families. They served search warrants at Matlak’s workplace and home, seizing his electronic devices to look for evidence.

The case was triggered after the mother of the 5-year-old victim had a talk with her daughter about good touching and bad touching, Botti said. Following that conversation, the girl told her mother about her encounter with Matlak earlier this year and she called detectives.

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Black Collar Crime: Pastor Christopher Stansell Accused of Embezzlement

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The Black Collar Crime Series relies on public news stories and publicly available information for its content. If any incorrect information is found, please contact Bruce Gerencser. Nothing in this post should be construed as an accusation of guilt. Those accused of crimes are innocent until proven guilty.

Christopher Stansell, pastor of First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Princeton, West Virginia, stands accused of embezzling more than $10,000 from the church.

The Bluefield Daily Telegraph reports:

A former pastor of First Christian Church in Princeton has been arrested on embezzlement charges.

Christopher L. Stansell, 48, was arrested July 27 for embezzling more than $10,000 in church funds, Sgt. M.S. Haynes, with the West Virginia State Police Princeton detachment, said.

Haynes said the incidents occurred over period of a year and a half while Stansell was employed as pastor of the church.

“During the investigation it was found that multiple checks written to and by the First Christian Church were embezzled and deposited into accounts held by Christopher Stansell,” Haynes said.

Stansell was arraigned and released on bond pending future hearings.

Update

WVVA reports that Stansell pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing.

Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Pastor Mitch Olson Accused of Sexually Assaulting Church Member

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pastor mitch olson

The victim has made a live video statement here. PLEASE take the time to watch it. Also, PLEASE read Why Women “Let” Pastors Take Sexual Advantage of Them.

Mitchell “Mitch” Olson, pastor of Grace Ministry Center in Kimball, Michigan, stands accused of sexually assaulting a woman he was counseling during an anointing ritual. When asked about the accusation, Olson said his hand may have — are you ready for it? — slipped in the anointing oil.

WXYZ-7 reports:

A young woman went to investigators at the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Office and said she went to her pastor asking for help getting forgiveness for her sins.

He offered an anointing ritual but what happened during that ritual has her believing she is a victim of sexual assault.

Justine Morden says she worshipped at Grace Ministries in Kimball for years.

Last year she decided she wanted to repent for her sins, strengthen her relationship with god, and get more involved – so she met with Pastor Mitch Olson for counsel.

“I trusted him. He has been my pastor since I’ve been in 6th grade,” Morden says.

He told her he could cleanse her of her sins with an anointing ritual – but he didn’t have anointing oil at the church.

That evening she says he wanted to come to the then 19-year-old’s apartment. He said he could anoint her.

However she says he told her because she had committed sexual sins – he would have to anoint sexual parts of her body.

When her mother told her that is not how the anointing ritual should be – she says she was shocked.

We went to the church to ask to speak with the pastor.

When confronted, according to an investigative report, a church board member said the pastor told him his hand may have slipped in the oil.

During a board meeting the pastor said it was an unusual ritual – because it was an exorcism, not an anointing.

“I was completely shocked that he would have the audacity to say this,” Morden says.” No, I am not possessed.”

When asked if he touched Justine inappropriately by police, his answer according to the police report was “No. No. No.”

The prosecutor received the report Tuesday and says a decision on charges is to be made in as soon as two weeks.

Video Link

The Times Herald adds:

The Marysville woman [Justine Morden], who then lived alone in a Port Huron apartment, said she was not happy with the way she was living her life and wanted to do something to get closer to God. She began seeking counseling from Olson, she said. She had known him since she was in middle school because her parents were dedicated members at Grace Ministry Center, 4731 Lapeer Road, Smiths Creek.

Olson suggested she be anointed to cleanse her of her sins. He said he didn’t have anointing oil at the church during a meeting in July 2016, but told her they would make time for the procedure. The practice of anointing is a religious ceremony that typically involves crowning subjects with oil.

“Later on that night, around like 8 or 9, he texted me and asked what my address was,” the alleged victim told the Times Herald. “I gave him the address and didn’t think anything of it since I trusted him … He got there and said, ‘I have the anointing oil if you want to be anointed,’ so I said ‘OK.’”

According to the police report, “Olson then said a prayer and placed oil on her head, Olson then did the same on (her) shoulders. Olson then asked if he could put the oil on her breasts (she) said yes and Olson put his hand down the front of (her) shirt making skin to skin contact with (her) breasts. Olson then put oil on (her) stomach/mid-section. Olson then asked he could put oil on (her) buttock, (she) responded yes. Olson then put his hand down the back of (her) pants and made skin to skin contact with (her) buttock cheeks. Olson then asked if he could put oil on (her) pubic area (front of pants), (she) responded yes. Olson then put his hand down the front of (her) pants and made skin to skin contact with (her) pubic region. Olson then touched (her) knees and ended with her feet.”

The Washington Times reports:

Grace Ministry Center board member Gordon Farnsworth does not dispute that Mr. Olson anointed the victim and touched her on her breasts and pubic region, but said that “the intent and extent of the touching” is in dispute, according to the police report.

Grace Ministry’s board conducted a disciplinary hearing in March attended by Mr. Olson, the alleged victim and the victim’s stepfather, and the resulting action was a mere “slap on the wrist,” according to the stepfather, who recorded the proceedings.

WXYZ reported that Mr. Olson in the same board meeting described the anointing ceremony as an exorcism as he considered Miss Morden possessed.

“Do you want your daughters coming to this church where this could possibly happen … I feel like it (has) been covered up,” he said, the Times Herald reported.

According to the police report, Mr. Olson’s misconduct may not be an isolated incident of impropriety involving a member of his flock: Another young woman has come forward to relay an incident from four years ago when the pastor attempted to record her changing her clothes on a cellphone left in a church changing room.

Prosecutors are currently reviewing the evidence and will decide on whether to move forward on the case in the next few weeks, WXYZ reported last Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Times Herald is requesting that other individuals who have either a “story of sexual assault or of an inappropriate occurrence” to contact the paper’s investigative reporters.

Update

Black Collar Crime: Pastor Mitch Olson Slips Out of Criminal Charges

An October 23, 2017 news report published by The Times Herald states:

A civil lawsuit was filed in St. Clair County Circuit Court on Friday against Grace Ministry Center in Kimball Township and its former pastor Mitch Olson.

The suit was filed on behalf of the woman who accused Olson of groping her during a religious ceremony. The suit seeks in excess of $25,000. Allegations against Olson include battery, assault, intentional infliction of emotional distress, fraud, breach of fiduciary duty and negligent infliction of emotional distress. Allegations against Grace Ministry Center include negligent supervision, negligent retention, negligent infliction of emotional distress, and violation of the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act.

The lawsuit comes after the St. Clair County Prosecutor’s Office declined to bring criminal charges against Olson after he was accused of sexually assaulting the woman, 20, of Port Huron. A police report was filed in August that stated Olson placed his hands on the woman’s breasts, buttocks and pubic area during an anointing ceremony inside her apartment.

Olson resigned from his position at the church on Oct. 8, according to a recorded farewell letter he read to church members. Olson was served with the lawsuit on Sunday at Grace Ministry Center during his farewell gathering.

Olson told the Times Herald on Monday that he looks forward to defending his church and himself in court.

“I was served with a lawsuit filed by the plaintiff in this case (Sunday) evening at Grace Ministry Center, a church I founded and served for nearly 11 years and am no longer a part of due to the false allegations of the claimant,” he said. “My heart aches that this person, who was never a member of the church and whom never had counseling from me, would deliberately lie and use the judicial system to advance a personal agenda at the cost to a church who has faithfully served this community for decades. I am left with only one choice: to vigorously defend the church and myself in this matter. We look forward to defending this case in court and restore our reputations that have been so grievously ruined by this person.”

The lawsuit states that “Defendant Mitchell Olson coerced (the woman) on multiple occasions to submit to unwelcome touching, including to touching of her breasts, buttocks, and vagina under her clothing … Plaintiff was fraudulently coerced into believing that the offensive touching was necessary to the anointment and an essential extension of her counseling because of the counselor/counselee relationship Plaintiff and Defendant maintained at the time of the incident and Plaintiff’s consent was therefore not voluntary .. Defendant Mitchell Olson’s actions caused Plaintiff (the woman) irreparable physical injury and emotional harm.”

The lawsuit stated that Olson falsely represented his action. The lawsuit also states that the incident has caused the woman much emotional and mental strain.

…..

The church is also being sued for alleged negligence in how it handled the report of the assault. The lawsuit claims that the church failed to protect the woman when the church board declined to take action against Olson.

The last claim argues that the church was in violation of the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act because Olson targeted the woman because of her gender.

“It’s clear that Pastor Olson targeted the victim because she was a young woman,” said Kathleen Garbacz, one of the non-profit attorneys representing the woman. “Not only has this been devastating for her personally, but we want to send a clear message that women should be safe from these kinds of horrors in all places, but especially in places of faith and counseling.”

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Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Pastor Amado Miranda on Trial for Sexually Abusing Young Parishioner

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Amado Miranda, former pastor of Agape International Baptist Church, is on trial, charged with “sexually abusing a 9-year-old parishioner at his church.”

Gabriel Monte, a reporter for Lubbock Online, writes:

Testimony began Tuesday for the trial of a 17-year-old indecency with a child case in which a pastor is accused of sexually abusing a 9-year-old parishioner at his church.

Amado Miranda, 68, pleaded not guilty to two counts of indecency with a child by sexual contact, which carry a punishment of two to 20 years in prison.

Miranda is accused of sexually molesting the girl in 2000, however, prosecutors said the abuse began in 1999. Police investigated an outcry the girl made in 2004 and Miranda was arrested and indicted in 2005. Prosecutors presented jurors with a timeline to explain the 12-year delay in trying the case.

Court records showed Amado was released on bond set at $25,000 after his arrest. In April 2006, Miranda’s bond was surrendered after he failed to show up for court to enter a guilty plea on the case. Miranda’s scheduled guilty plea was not revealed to jurors during the trial.

A warrant for his arrest was issued and he was was arrested in 2008 in El Paso and was again released on bond, which was raised to $30,000.

He forfeited his second bond in December 2008 after failing to keep in contact with his bonding company and a warrant for his arrest was issued in May 2009. However, he wasn’t arrested until May 13, 2016, in El Paso by U.S Customs and Border Protection agents. He was taken to the Lubbock County Detention Center in July 2016 where he remains and his bond is set at $100,000.

In his opening statement, Miranda’s attorney, David Martinez, told jurors to expect his client to testify he did not molest the girl and that the accusations came from a girl who belonged to a family that was burdened with problems. He said Sugar Land detectives coerced a confession out of his client, who was not advised of his Miranda Rights during the interview.

The girl, who is 26 now, told jurors Tuesday that her family met Miranda through her aunt in 1999 and they began attending the Agape International Baptist Church on East 82nd Street where he was the pastor.

The woman said she and her three cousins would be taken to the church by Miranda on the weekdays. She said Miranda made them call him “Abuelo” and he once gave her a Barbie doll as a Christmas present. She said she was the only child among the cousins to get a gift from him.

She said she and her cousins would play in a playroom or take turns using the office computer at the church. She would often be the last one to use the computer and would be alone with Miranda while her cousins were in the other room.

She said Miranda had her sit in his lap while she was on the computer and slid his hand under her skirt and touch her genitals. The abuse happened multiple times, she said, and she tried to get out of going to the church but was forced to go by her grandmother. She said every time she spent time at the church she expected to be molested.

….

An episode that stood out to her was when Miranda told her he had a present for her in his pocket and made her reach inside it. She said she touched Miranda’s genitals through a hole he had cut in his pocket.

She said she didn’t tell anyone about the abuse at the time because she was afraid no one would believe her as Miranda had a strong relationship with her family.

In 2000, Miranda left Lubbock for another church in Sugar Land. Four years later, the girl made an outcry to her parents and to a school counselor. She said her grandmother told her Miranda had called and asked to stay with them for a few days while he was in Lubbock. Upon hearing the news, the woman said she began getting flashbacks of the abuse, became depressed and often cried unexpectedly.

….

Former Sugar Land police Det. Marshall Slot, who now works as a security consultant for an energy company, said he interviewed Miranda in April 2005 with the help of another police department employee who served as a translator. A three-hour recording of the interview was played to jurors.

Miranda’s attorney objected to the admissibility of the interview, saying Slot never read his client his Miranda Rights. Slot said he was not required to read the warning since Miranda was not under arrest at the time of the interview. Slot could be heard telling Miranda multiple times during the interview that he could leave at any point.

During the first hour of the interview, Miranda said the girl and her cousins would spend time at his church after hours, but he denied abusing the girl. He said he believed the girl and her family misinterpreted his displays of affection.

….

About two hours into the interview, Miranda could be heard admitting to touching the girl inappropriately and making the girl touch his genitals.

“I would run my hands where I shouldn’t have,” he said. “It was just a moment of madness.”

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Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Pastor’s Wife Susan Pratt Stands Accused of Stealing $1.4 Million

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Susan Pratt, whose husband pastors Living Waters Full Gospel Church in Hazard, Kentucky was indicted last week on theft charges.

LEX18 reports:

A pastor’s wife is accused of stealing money from a clinic.

Last week, a grand jury indicted Susan Pratt on theft charges.

The indictment says Pratt stole more than $10,000 from Mercy Clinic in Jackson. The Breathitt County Commonwealth’s Attorney said that the Mercy Clinic of Jackson is alleging Pratt stole $1.4 million.

Her husband is the pastor at Living Waters Full Gospel Church in Hazard.

Pratt is scheduled to be arraigned Aug. 11.

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Black Collar Crime: Catholic Priest Marcin Nurek Cops a Feel and Tells Teen Girl, ‘You’re Sexy’

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marcin nurek

Marcin Nurek, a newly-minted priest that was to scheduled to become the parochial vicar at St. Catherine of Siena Church in Mountain Lakes, New Jersey, was charged with “endangering the welfare of a child – whose age was listed as being at least 13 but younger than 16 – and criminal sexual contact.”

The Daily Record reports:

A newly-ordained priest has been charged with putting his hand under a teenager’s skirt in Boonton, touching her buttocks and telling her “You’re sexy,” according to court records.

The Rev. Marcin A. Nurek, 37, was ordained a priest on July 1 and was supposed to start a post as parochial vicar this month at St. Catherine of Siena Church in Mountain Lakes. That assignment will not take place and Nurek has been placed on administrative leave and cannot function as a priest, said Richard Sokerka, director of communications for the Diocese of Paterson.

The alleged incident occurred in the town of Boonton last Thursday, when Nurek put his hand under the girl’s skirt and touched her buttocks over her underwear.  Court records did not state where the incident allegedly occurred but said the teen was upset but not injured.

Nurek was charged with endangering the welfare of a child – whose age was listed as being at least 13 but younger than 16 – and criminal sexual contact. Via a closed-circuit television link between the Morris County jail and Superior Court, Nurek appeared on Friday for an initial review before Judge Ira Cohen.

Morris County Assistant Prosecutor Meg Rodriguez said the state has filed a motion to detain Nurek in the county jail until the charges are resolved. A detention hearing has been scheduled for Wednesday.

Nurek, an immigrant of Poland, was assisted during the hearing by a Polish interpreter. Nurek’s status as a priest was not mentioned at the hearing but other court records and documents confirmed his ordination.

According to The Beacon, the weekly newspaper of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson, Nurek was ordained in 2016 as a transitional deacon, the final step before the call to the Sacrament of Holy Orders – the priesthood – in 2017. On July 1, Diocese of Paterson Bishop Arthur Serratelli ordained Nurek to the priesthood along with others.

The Diocese issued a statement, saying it is saddened by the incident and is cooperating fully with the Prosecutor’s Office. It also said that Nurek had completed all training related to proper conduct with children.

“The Diocese of Paterson was informed of the arrest of Rev. Marcin Nurek at approximately 8:45 p.m. on Thursday, August 3, 2017, at which time the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office was immediately notified. Since then, the Diocese has cooperated fully with the Prosecutor’s Office in its investigation,” the statement said.

“In addition, Rev. Nurek was immediately placed on administrative leave, his faculties were revoked and his assignment as parochial vicar at St. Catherine of Siena Church, Mountain Lakes, was concluded,” the statement said. (Revocation of faculties means that Nurek cannot function as a priest).

“Rev. Nurek arrived in the United States from Poland in March of 2015. He was just recently ordained to the priesthood on July 1, 2017. He was scheduled to begin his assignment at St. Catherine of Siena in August 2017. His international criminal history background check was completed on Oct. 17, 2014 and was clear. He completed the Diocese’s Protecting God’s Children educational program on April 9, 2015 and he signed the Diocesan Code of Pastoral Conduct on March 9, 2015,” the statement said.

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Black Collar Crime: Baptist Pastor Roscoe Cooper, III Charged with DUI

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Roscoe Cooper, III, pastor of Rising Mount Zion Baptist Church in Richmond, Virginia, was charged yesterday with DUI.

CBS-6 reports:

A prominent pastor and vice chair of the Henrico County School Board was arrested for driving under the influence early Saturday morning.

Virginia State Police arrested 43-year-old Roscoe Cooper III around 1 a.m. on I-64 west of the Gaskins Road exit in the West End.

Cooper was charged with driving under the influence.

However, state police have not yet released the details surrounding Cooper’s arrest.

Cooper, who is the school board’s vice chair and represents the Fairfield District, is well known in the Richmond metro area.

He comes from a line of family clergy members and is the pastor of Rising Mt. Zion Baptist Church in eastern Henrico County.

Close friends and clergy members are asking the public not to rush to judgment.

“We are put on a high pedestal and sometimes people cannot accept that we all have issues,” Sharon Broaddus, a family friend, said. “They expect the pastor to be perfect with no problems. What the church and the Christians should do now is rally around Pastor Cooper.”

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Here’s Cooper’s Jesus-worthy bio from the Rising Mount Zion’s website:

Dr. Roscoe D. Cooper, III, a third-generation of spiritually powerful preachers, is a twice scholar graduate of Virginia Union University in Richmond, Virginia from which he earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Religion and Philosophy and a Master of Divinity Degree from the esteem Samuel Dewitt Proctor School of Theology, graduating Cum Laude. Additionally, he sought to show himself approved, completing post-graduate study at the Chicago Theological Seminary, and in 2013, received a Doctor of Divinity Degree from Richmond Theological Seminary.

​​Richmond born, reared and educated, his achievements and recognitions are noteworthy throughout the state, country and world in which he has readily and successfully combined his evangelistic duties with the concerns and needs of the community.  He is the recipient of numerous honors and rewards as an Outstanding Education Orator, a Prolific Communicator and Leader, Minister of the Year for four consecutive years, and a keynote speaker at the National Baptist Congress of Christian Education of the National Baptist Convention USA.  Additionally, he has been honored and recognized by the Richmond NAACP, served as a community representative to the Congressional Black Caucus Discussions in Washington, D. C., a productive President of the Baptist Ministers Conference of Richmond and Vicinity, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Capital Area Health Network, is a member of the Religious Advisory Committee of Virginia Senator Mark Warner, an invited participant in the Educational Seminar in Israel, and the elected Henrico County School Board Representative for the Fairfield District.

His first pastorate was at the Long Branch Baptist Church in Woodford, Virginia where he honorably and diligently served for three years.  In 2003, he was called to the historical Rising Mount Zion Baptist Church – Hartman Street, Henrico County as Pastor.  Since his arrival at Rising Mount Zion Baptist Church, the church has continuously embraced a direction of spiritual growth, and has revolutionized, strengthened, and excelled in every aspect of its existence under his leadership.  Pastor Cooper has more than quadrupled the membership, birthed several new ministries, and executed a comprehensive short and long term building and renovation plan, resulting in the funding and construction of phase 1 of a multi-million dollar sanctuary and administrative wing within his first ten years, refurbished the interior and exterior of the old buildings and the surrounding grounds to absolute condition and beauty.

He is a devoted family man who is a called  servant of God who is focused and inspired by the promises of God, unchained by the cross, intentionally lives his creeds, treads the path of excellence, credibly inhabits his sermons, and unashamedly proclaims the Word of God each time he stands.  Consistently, he nurtures the spirits, minds and hearts of his congregants with the powerful and unadulterated Word of God that encourages everyone to seek first the Kingdom of God, walk in His Way, take up the cup of salvation, and thank and glorify God for all things.

In spite of the indelible manifestation of God’s favor on this branch of Zion and its people, and the teaching and preaching of the Good News Gospel, he remains and encourages others to remain humble,   study and witness the Word of God, and purposely relish the challenge to dare to make a difference!   It is evident that he is spiritually anointed, socially engaged, and academically prepared for the task at hand—to teach and preach the Good News Gospel, bring souls to Christ and soundly lead the flock that God has given him.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports:

A Henrico County School Board member accused of driving under the influence early Saturday is also facing a charge of refusing to take a breath test to determine the alcohol content in his blood, according to court documents.

….

The DUI is a misdemeanor. The breath-test charge is a civil violation that accuses Cooper, 43, of “unreasonably” refusing to provide a breath sample, according to court records.

According to Sgt. Steve Vick with Virginia State Police, Cooper was stopped just before 1 a.m. on Saturday on westbound Interstate 64 just west of the Gaskins Road exit.

….

Cooper, who is the pastor at Rising Mount Zion Baptist Church in Henrico, has other driving-related charges pending in Henrico General District Court. There’s a pair of charges from June 30 that accuse him of driving 43 mph in a 25 mph zone and of driving without a license, according to court records. Cooper also faces a charge of driving 38 mph in a 25 mph zone on July 19.

Update

Channel 6 reports:

Cooper was arrested after a state trooper reported seeing a car on I-64 west driving in two lanes.

The trooper stopped the suspect, Cooper, and said he smelled like alcohol.

According to the arrest documents, Cooper admitted to having two drinks.

The arresting trooper said Cooper seemed nervous, was fumbling around and could not find his wallet or license.

Records show Cooper blew a point 0.10 on the breathalyzer test at the scene, so he was charged with drinking and driving, handcuffed and taken to jail. The legal limit in Virginia is 0.08.

According to the arresting docs, he was given another breathalyzer test, but barely blew on the tube three times, ending with a deficient sample. As a result, he was charged with refusing to take a test.

When asked if he had considered resigning from the school board, Cooper was defiant Thursday evening.

“I’m not convicted of anything. What am I resigning for?” Cooper asked. “I’ve still got a job to do and I’m excited about this year. There are great possibilities and potentials.”

….

A November 15, 2017 Channel Six story reports:

Pastor and Henrico School Board member Roscoe Cooper III received a six-month suspended jail sentence after he was found guilty of driving while intoxicated. Cooper’s driver’s license has been suspended for a year.

Cooper was arrested in August after a Virginia State Trooper reported seeing Cooper’s car driving in two lanes along Interstate 64 west in Henrico’s West End. The trooper stopped Cooper and reported the Rising Mt. Zion Baptist Church pastor smelled of alcohol.

….

Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Pastor Gilbert Deya Deported to Face Child-Trafficking Charges

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gilbert deya

Gilbert Deya, a British/Kenyan Evangelical pastor, was deported to Kenya to face child-trafficking charges.

The BBC reports:

The UK has extradited a self-styled Kenyan pastor, who claimed he created miraculous pregnancies, to Kenya to face child-trafficking charges.

Gilbert Deya’s extradition came after he failed in his decade-long legal battle to remain in the UK.

He denied charges of stealing five children between 1999 and 2004 when he appeared in court in Nairobi.

Concerns were first raised about the conduct of Mr Deya, who ran a church in London, in a BBC investigation in 2004.

Infertile or post-menopausal women who attended the Gilbert Deya Ministries church in Peckham, south-east London, were told they could have “miracle” babies.

But the babies were always “delivered” in backstreet clinics in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital.

Mr Deya later moved to Scotland, and was arrested in Edinburgh in 2006 under an international arrest warrant issued by Kenya.

His Gilbert Deya Ministries is being investigated by the UK Charity Commission for alleged mismanagement.

“Our statutory inquiry into Gilbert Deya Ministries is ongoing. We are currently considering the implication of Gilbert Deya’s extradition on our investigation,” the commission said in a statement.

  • A former stonemason who moved to London from Kenya in the mid-90s
  • Set up the Gilbert Deya Ministries as a registered charity, with African and Asian branches
  • Known for his blend of charismatic, performance-style preaching
  • Had income of £652,800 ($858,000) for the financial year ending December 2015
  • Spent £609,300
  • Described by UK Labour MP David Lammy as a “modern-day snake-oil salesman”
  • Says he was consecrated as an Archbishop by a US evangelist in 1992

When the BBC asked Mr Deya during its 2014 investigation how he explained the births of children with DNA different to that of their alleged parents, the 65-year-old Mr Deya said: “The miracle babies which are happening in our ministry are beyond human imagination.

“It is not something I can say I can explain because they are of God and things of God cannot be explained by a human being.”

Kenya’s police spokesman Charles Owino told the BBC that Mr Deya had arrived in Nairobi aboard a Kenya Airways flight following his extradition.

Mr Deya had opposed his extradition, saying he feared being tortured and sentenced to death.

In 2007, his wife, Mary, was sentenced to two years in prison in Kenya after being convicted of stealing a baby.

In 2011, she was sentenced to three years in jail after being convicted of stealing another child.

Desperate women, some past the menopause and others who were infertile, were convinced that being prayed for by Mr Deya and travelling to Kenya would result in a child.

….

According to Wikipedia:

Deya was born in the morning of 2 February 1952 in Juja, Kiambu County, outside of Nairobi and was the eleventh child in a family of fifteen children. He belongs to Luo tribe ans his name “Juma” means Sunday, which is the day he was born. His father, Samuel Oyanda Deya was a sisal plantations worker from Bondo working in Juja. His parents were never meant to be a couple because his mother, Monica Nono Deya, declined the arranged marriage with his father.

He attended primary school but the school preacher dropped out because of bullying and poverty. He started preaching Jinja, Kampala, in Uganda, where he beat up a woman for hitting the children of his sister and worked there as a porter.

He married his 14 year-old wife, Mary Anyango, when he was at 21 on 27 December 1958. They gave birth to fifteen children in total. He started the “Salvation of Jesus Christ Church” in 1976.

He was ordained by the United Evangelical Church of Kenya and styles himself “Archbishop”. He was an evangelist in Kenya in the late 1980s to early 1990s, but moved to the UK, establishing Gilbert Deya Ministries in 1997. The ministry now has churches in Liverpool, London, Birmingham, Nottingham, Luton, Reading, and Manchester, Sheffield and in 2006 acquired a building and planning permission in Leeds. The church claims to be “the fastest growing Ministry in the UK and worldwide”

The Gilbert Deya Ministries claim that Deya’s powers allow him to be able to cause infertile women to become pregnant. Mr Deya claims that “through the power of prayer and the Lord Jesus” he has helped sterile women give birth. In the UK, one woman is claimed to have had three children in less than a year. The women travelled to Kenya in order to “give birth”.

Deya’s wife, Eddah (also known as Mary Deya), was arrested during November 2004 in Nairobi and charged with stealing children. Ten children, none of whom had any genetic connection to the Deya family, were found at Mr Deya’s House. Twenty babies have been placed in foster care in Kenya after DNA tests showed they had no connection to their alleged mothers. Rose Atieno Kiserem, a former pastor with Deya’s ministry was jailed along with Mrs Deya. Upon her release from jail, Kiserem confessed that the ‘miracle babies’ were “a hoax created by the Deyas and their accomplices to deceive me and other God-fearing people.”

Deya has a warrant out for his arrest in Kenya for the trafficking of babies out of the country. The Kenyan police have alleged that the ministry is a baby-snatching ring, and they have petitioned for his extradition from the UK. Mr Deya is seeking political asylum from his base in Glasgow. He was arrested by police at Edinburgh Sheriff Court in 2006.

In November 2004 the High Court in the UK ruled that a ‘miracle baby’ in London was the victim of child trafficking, and that the supposed miracle displayed was a ruse in order to generate funds from a “deceived congregation”. Mr Justice Ryder ruled that in order to maintain the illusion of a genuine birth, the child’s ‘mother’ was seriously assaulted “and a live child who had been born to another family was presented to her as her child.” He also ruled that “[the baby’s] birth as described was a falsehood not a miracle.”

On 13 December 2006, Mr Deya was arrested in London by the Metropolitan Police. A police spokesman said Gilbert Deya was detained under an arrest warrant issued by Kenyan authorities, who had charged him with child abduction and trafficking. He was ordered by a court on 8 November 2007, to be extradited from the UK to Kenya to face five counts of child stealing.

Deya appealed against extradition on the grounds that he might face torture in Kenya, but in late 2008 his case was rejected by the High Court and leave to appeal to the House of Lords was refused. It was reported in April 2010 that Deya was still in England and that David Lammy, Deya’s MP, had enquired of the government why he had not yet been extradited. Lammy was concerned that justice was being denied to several of his constituents who were victims of the trafficked babies fraud. The Home Office responded that it was still considering representations from Deya’s solicitors that sending him to Kenya would breach his human rights.

In September 2011, news reports indicated that all avenues of appeal had been exhausted and Deya would now be extradited to Kenya.

In December 2011, a court in Kenya cleared Mary Deya of obtaining registration for five children irregularly.

The London Evening Standard reported on 21 October 2016 that Deya had applied for a judicial review of the decision to extradite him.

On 12 July 2017, Premier Christian Media reported that the High Court had refused Deya’s application for a judicial review and that he would be extradited.

On 3rd August, 2017, Deya was extradited from the UK to Kenya to face child trafficking charges. He was immediately arraigned in court force child trafficking offences.

 

Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Pastor Guillermo Quintanilla Accused of Sexually Assaulting Young Girls

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guillermo quintanilla

The Black Collar Crime Series relies on public news stories and publicly available information for its content. If any incorrect information is found, please contact Bruce Gerencser. Nothing in this post should be construed as an accusation of guilt. Those accused of crimes are innocent until proven guilty.

Guillermo Quintanilla, pastor of El Shadai Church of God (which rented space in Reformation Lutheran Church’s building) in Canal Winchester, Ohio, has been charged with “rape, sexual battery and two counts of gross sexual imposition.”

Cleveland.com reports:

The pastor of a church near Columbus is being held in jail on a $1 million bond after being accused of sexually assaulting three young girls, reports say.

Guillermo Quintanilla, 47, pastor at El Shadai Church of God in Canal Winchester, is charged with rape, sexual battery and two counts of gross sexual imposition, all felonies, according to 10tv.com.

Court documents show a mother told investigators that Quintanilla assaulted her daughter a few times per week over four years, beginning when her daughter was 8 years old, WSYX Channel 6 reports.

Two other victims came forward with accusations against Quintanilla after police began investigating, with one being abused beginning at age 6, reports say.

Quintanilla is accused of pushing one of the victims to the floor of his office in an attempt to keep her from telling anyone about the assaults. He reportedly hit her in the face several times, threatened to rape her, and to kill her and her mother, according to WCMH Channel 4.

The pastor denied assaulting the girls but told police if he touched the girls’ private parts, it was by accident, WCMH reports.

A September 5, 2018 Columbus Dispatch report states:

A Columbus pastor has been sentenced to eight years in prison for sexually abusing three preteen girls at his East Side church.

Guillermo Quintanilla, 48, entered an Alford plea in Franklin County Common Pleas Court on Tuesday to three counts of gross sexual imposition.

The sentence, imposed by Judge Laurel Beatty Blunt, was recommended by prosecuting and defense attorneys as part of a plea agreement. In an Alford plea, a defendant doesn’t admit guilt, but concedes that prosecutors have enough evidence to gain a conviction.

Quintanilla reached the plea agreement as jury selection was about to begin for a trial on the charges. Six other counts of gross sexual imposition, as well as one count each of rape and sexual battery were dismissed as part of the deal.

After he is released from prison, he will be required to register as a sex offender every six months for 25 years.

Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Pastor Derek Jones Accused of Domestic Violence

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The Black Collar Crime Series relies on public news stories and publicly available information for its content. If any incorrect information is found, please contact Bruce Gerencser. Nothing in this post should be construed as an accusation of guilt. Those accused of crimes are innocent until proven guilty.

Michael “Derek” Jones, pastor of Sold Out Church in Conway, Arkansas, was arrested earlier this month and charged with third-degree domestic battery.

The Log Cabin Democrat reports:

A local preacher was arrested earlier this month on suspicion of domestic battery.

Michael “Derek” Jones, of Conway, was arrested in Mayflower around 2:30 a.m. July 13 on a third-degree domestic battery charge.

Jones is the current lead pastor at the Sold Out Church, located at 701 Polk St. in Conway.

According to the church’s website, Jones has been the lead pastor at the church since January 2014.

The Log Cabin Democrat reached out to Jones for comment via phone on Thursday. However, calls went unanswered by press time.

According to court documents, Jones was ordered to have no contact with the victim following the incident.

Jones currently faces third-degree battery, which is a Class A misdemeanor. However, his case has since been sent to the Faulkner County Prosecutor’s Office for review.

Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Carol Crews confirmed Thursday the prosecutor’s office received Jones’ case file last week and would soon make a determination whether Jones’ charge should be upgraded to a felony.

Jones is set to appear in Mayflower District Court at 8:30 a.m. Aug. 16 for a plea and arraignment hearing regarding the misdemeanor charge.

According to Jones’ bio on his church’s website:

Derek and Amie Jones decided to respond to God’s prompting to start a new church and called a meeting at their house on May 2, 2012. This was the culmination of a long process that had been leading to this point. For years Derek knew he had an anointing in his life to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to lead His people, but instead looked for answers in everything except Christ. He tried to run from that calling into the ministry for a very long time. Finally, after losing a child in October of 2009, he threw his hands up and boldly prayed “Whatever you have for me Lord, I’m ready.”

Derek and Amie served bi-vocationally on staff at ThatChurch.com in Conway, Arkansas, where Derek was ordained. Derek also served as the Director of Men’s Ministries for Homelessness at the Union Rescue Mission in Little Rock for 4 years, but took a leap of faith in January 2014 and became full-time at Sold Out Church as the Lead Pastor

Derek and Amie live in Conway and have a passion and love for their city. They have five children, [names removed] whom they pray in faith will rise up to be the greatest godly men and women of their generation.

Sold Out Church Facebook page.

The comments on the original article are quite interesting, yet predictable:

It’s a shame that both sides of this story is not being shared as to the what and why. Derek Jones is human, he has not placed himself upon a pedestal. He sins as we all do. If you want to know his past, ,just simply ask him and he will share it with you and he will also share his love of Jesus Christ. Pastor Derek has publicly shared his past more than once. As for me and my family we will continue to serve the Lord and continue serving at Sold Out Church. We will continue making Jesus known in a hurting world and develop SOLD OUT followers of Him.

I also am a member of Sold Out Church as is my family and Pastor Derek and his family have been nothing but real. He doesn’t claim to be or portray himself to be perfect..he after all is human. We all sin everyday whether it’s breaking the law, or not being truthful, no one sin is greater than the other. I wish you would have taken the time to give more of the facts instead of making it out to try to damage his character. The fact is he was trying to protect not only others but himself as well. We will continue to support Derek and his family and our church through this.

My family and I consider Pastor Derek Jones as a part of our family. He is human, and, yes he makes mistakes. He will openly tell anyone that there is only one perfect “being” and that is God. He has never even pretended to be perfect and he is as authentic and transparent as they come. He has never wanted to be put on a pedestal, for only one deserves that honor. We will continue to support our Pastor, Michael Derek Jones.

Mathew 7:1-5 1 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. 3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

And finally, one comment that suggests there is more to this story:

It is very important to note that this is not the first time that Michael Derek Jones has been in trouble with the law for violence. He has previously served time for a violent offense.

All of the cult like supporters of Michael Derek Jones are basing their opinions on what they were TOLD by MICHAEL DEREK JONES.

The TRUTH will come out in court.

For those of you who are claiming self defense, a normal person, in a reasonable state of mind, should retreat if they feel threatened, especially if they are at a house where they were not invited to.

The medical records and photos of the victims face will provide clear evidence that this was not a case of self defense. It was a violent beating. How does Michael Derek Jone’s face look in the mug shot? Does he look injured?

What is truly sad is that one of the cult like supporters of Michael Derek Jones called DHS and made false accusations against the victim. DHS went to the victim’s house, and after seeing the wounds and swelling on the victim’s face, interviewing the victim’s daughter, and inspecting the home, immediately concluded that the report was unsubstantiated and only a clear attempt to smear the victim. DHS left the victim’s house after only 10 minutes or so. Shame on you.

For the cult like supporter quoting scripture, you left out Matthew chapter 5 verse 39.
“But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.”

The thing that the cult like supporters of this man need to realize, is that he came up with a story to try to make himself not look responsible. When the truth comes out in court, his story will not matter. The facts are what matter.

I do feel sorry for the members of Sold Out Church. You are having to accept some facts that are not easy to accept.

And I feel sorry for the family of Michael Derek Jones.

I hope that all of the truth comes out in court and that justice is served.

In 2014, The Arkansas Online ran a feature story about Jones. Here’s an excerpt of what they had to say:

Derek Jones of Conway said he knew when he was 8 years old that he was called to the ministry, but he went astray for years before accepting the call.

His passion reignited, the now 32-year-old started Sold Out Church about two years ago with approximately 30 people in his living room, and on Mother’s Day, May 11, the church will hold a grand opening in its renovated building at 1015 Lincoln St. in Conway.

“We don’t believe the church is a building; we believe we are the church. We’re here for the world,” he said.

The flier for the church uses the saying: “This ain’t your momma’s church.”

Jones said he grew up in North Little Rock, the son of an alcoholic. His parents divorced when he was 2, and his father has since died.

“When I was 12, my godfather passed away,” Jones said. “I turned away, looked for answers” in unhealthy ways. “I ran into trouble. I felt Jesus had betrayed me.”

Things got much worse before they got better.

Jones served in the Air Force in 2001-2002, stationed in North Carolina, but after a drunken fight, he shot two people and went to prison.

“My whole congregation knows about it; I never hide anything,” he said. “I truly believe I’m a testament to what happens when you encounter a holy God,” Jones said.

“I went to a party one night; things went really bad. Me and a guy got into a fight,” Jones said. “He threw a cinder block through my windshield.” Another individual was involved, too, Jones said. “I decided I was going to go back with a gun and make them give me money and make them pay for it.

“I did shoot two people. They did not die; I did not kill them.”

One man was treated and released for a “flesh wound,” Jones said. The other was seriously injured.

Jones said he didn’t immediately become a Christian while in prison. He said he saw people come into prison, “walk in the door and say, ‘Oh, Jesus, save me.’ That wasn’t me.

“Somebody gave me a Bible, and that’s when everything changed.”

Jones was 21 years old. Although he started out in a North Carolina prison, he transferred to Arkansas to do his time — seven years.

….

“I had been clean and sober since 2002. In 2009, that’s when everything really, really changed. I realized I’m not in control.

“I threw up my hands in surrender and said, ‘Lord, you’ve been calling me for years.’ Although this makes no sense, that’s all I can lean on.”

Three days later, Jones said, his best friend called and encouraged him to apply for a job.

“He said, ‘God told me you have to know about it,’” Jones said the friend told him. The friend also had applied for the position.

Jones was working at a plumbing company at the time.

“I knew in my spirit what was taking place,” he said. “I said, ‘I’m afraid if I apply, I’m going to get it.’”

Sure enough, Jones got the job as director of the homeless ministry at Union Rescue Mission in Little Rock.

“It’s been like riding a rocket ship ever since,” Jones said.

About two years ago, he said, he started a church service in his home with around 30 people. It grew like crazy, he said. Today, there are about 100 members of Sold Out Church.

“I have experience dealing with the last, the least and the lost,” he said.

As director, he worked hand in hand with a nine-month “life-recovery” program for people at the mission who had struggled, like he had.

Jones said he was ordained through That Church, which is no longer in Conway, although its Sherwood location is thriving, he said.

“I do have a biblical degree through Andersonville Theological Seminary,” he said, which is an online program. [an unaccredited institution that some haves called a diploma mill.]

It was too hard to be a pastor and work at the mission and “do both excellently,” he said.

He resigned Jan. 3 from his job at the Union Rescue Mission and took a $23,000 pay cut to become a full-time pastor, he said.

“Four weeks after I resigned, I found out my wife was pregnant with our sixth child — Logan is with the Lord — our fifth that’s with us,” he said.

Jones said it was a surprise, albeit a happy one.

Despite the financial impact, Jones said he has no doubt that he’s where God wants him to be.

“It’s stepping out on faith,” he said.

….

“My background, I was baptized Baptist, … but we are not Baptist; we are nondenominational. We’re about Jesus. That’s what we’re about,” he said. “We’re a church, and we represent Jesus Christ, and that’s what we do. On our website, it says it doesn’t matter what your race, religion, sexuality, anything.

“I’m not going to tell anyone sin is OK, but we’re going to love anyone who comes through the door.”

Update

Prosecutors drop felony charges against Jones.