Tulsa Pastor's Arrest on Sex Charge Sparks Dhs Probe of Child-Care Center
By Amanda Bland
The Oklahoma Department of Human Services is investigating a church-affiliated child-care center after the church's pastor was arrested on a sex-abuse complaint Monday. DHS has visited the center 13 times since July 2012.
Gregory Ivan Hawkins, 54, was jailed on a complaint of sexual abuse of a minor after detectives located him near the 3600 block of the L.L. Tisdale Parkway. He posted a $50,000 bond and was released at 11:17 p.m. Monday.
Hawkins is accused of maintaining a sexual relationship with a teen between the ages of 14 and 15 since April 2012, his arrest report shows. The girl became pregnant in January, allegedly with Hawkins' child.
Hawkins is the pastor of Zion Fellowship Ministries and owner of Zion Child Care & Learning Center, both of which are located in the Zion Plaza shopping center at 612 E. 46th St. North, his arrest report shows. The report lists the name of the church as Zion Plaza Church.
DHS spokeswoman Sheree Powell said licensing staff were at the child-care center Tuesday morning.
Investigators and the child-care facility's management staff concluded Hawkins will not be allowed on the premises during the center's hours of operations, a DHS representative said. The teen was not a patron of the child-care center, they found.
The victim told police Hawkins sexually abused her at at least one of the Zion facilities; two Holiday Inn hotels, 2316 W. Cameron St. and 17 W. Seventh St.; his home in the 1800 block of North Xenophon Avenue; and inside his vehicle near 9600 S. Riverside Parkway.
An emergency order of protection was issued on Feb. 15 after a woman filed a petition on behalf of herself and her 15-year-old daughter.
The petition alleges Hawkins approached the teen at a dollar store and told her he would "take (her mother) out" and that he hoped she didn't show up at school. The petitioner wrote she had been harassed and intimidated by Hawkins since a court case filed against her was dismissed last year.
DHS conducts an investigation independent of area law enforcement when criminal wrongdoing is alleged, Powell said.
Investigators examine the safety of the children at the facility in question and probe whether licensing requirements are being met. The DHS probe was still ongoing Tuesday afternoon.
Zion Child Care & Learning Center is rated by DHS as a two-star facility out of three available stars.
The department posts monitoring summaries of each facility it licenses online. Records are only available on the site for one year.
The database shows DHS visited the child-care facility monthly between July and November 2012.
Investigators found that complaints regarding supervision and transportation concerns filed on Nov. 15 were substantiated. Detailed records about the nature of those complaints or the department's findings were not immediately available Tuesday.
In December, January and February the site was visited a total of six times for period and follow-up inspections.
DHS found the center to be noncompliant in the building maintenance category three times, the supervision category once, the behavior and guidance category once, and the two compliance issues regarding transportation were found on a single visit in January.
Zion Child Care has an approved capacity of 30 children and accepts children between the age ranges of 0-11 months and 6 years or older, according to the database.
Attempts to reach Hawkins by phone Tuesday were unsuccessful.
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