Reid Buchanan, a pastor at St. Luke United Methodist Church in Lexington, Kentucky, has been charged with sexually abusing two teen girls who are family members.
The Lexington Herald Leader reports:
A former associate pastor of a large Lexington church has been charged with sexual abuse of two teens, according to media reports.
Reid Buchanan, who worked at St. Luke United Methodist Church from July 2016 until August of this year, was arrested Wednesday by Lexington police. Two minors accused Buchanan, 63, of touching them inappropriately multiple times, starting when they were younger, according to WKYT, the Herald-Leader’s reporting partner.
The abuse of the youngest victim allegedly began two years ago, according to WKYT. She didn’t come forward until a recent incident.
Abuse of the other victim began many years prior with the latest incident in April, according to the report.
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As associate pastor at St. Luke United Methodist Church, he was director of missions and was involved in the planning of mission trips, said Cathy Bruce, director of communications for the Kentucky Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church, headquartered in Crestwood in Oldham County.
The allegations were brought to the attention of the church in late July, Bruce said, at which point Buchanan was immediately relieved of his duties and suspended.
She said there are no allegations of misconduct on church grounds or at a church event.
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Buchanan pleaded not guilty Thursday in court. He was ordered not to have contact with the teens, and a preliminary hearing was set for 8:30 a.m. Nov. 3
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