Gatesville Youth Pastor Charged with Sexual Assault Asked for Forgiveness
KCEN
A local pastor bonded out of jail Friday afternoon, after being charged with sexual assaulting a teenager. Wil Jackson, 32, was arrested Thursday, and charged with two counts of sexual assault of a child, and one count of indecency with a child by sexual contact. The charges date back to the early 2000s, starting when the alleged victim was 14. Jackson met the $45,000 total bond amount early Friday afternoon. KCEN obtained a copy of the arrest affidavit Friday. The documents show several different instances of the alleged abuse. What's more, they state the pastor admitted to what he had done, and asked for forgiveness. The affidavit shows the alleged victim came to investigators this week, and told them Jackson would touch her under her clothes while driving her around. She also told them he forced her to perform oral sex. The affidavit states it started in 2002, and continued for about two years. Coryell County Sheriff Johnny Burks said it often takes a while for victims to come forward. “It's not unusual,” Burks said. “We work these cases a lot, and we see that a lot of times, a victim finally comes forward after several years. It's not unusual for that to happen." Jackson is now the youth pastor at Coryell Community Church on the west side of Gatesville. According to the church's web site, he started that role in 2004. Church members took to social media to defend Jackson, saying he's a good man, and they couldn't believe he would ever do something like this. The affidavit states the girl first went to her parents when she was 16. They confronted Jackson, but he denied the allegations. This week, according to the affidavit, the alleged victim called Jackson in a “controlled phone call,” with a sheriff's investigator listening in. “He told her he was sorry for what happened between he and her,” the affidavit states. “She asked him if he thought she should go to the police and he said no,” the documents show. “Jackson told her he has asked for forgiveness from God and told her he made mistakes when he was younger and that he was sorry for what he did and asked her to forgive him.” Jackson was also employed at one point as a bus driver for Gatesville ISD. The district released a statement Friday afternoon, saying he was no longer an employee there. The statement also says investigators do not believe anything happened within the district, but urged parents with questions to contact the sheriff's office. "We hope that this is an isolated incident, and this has never happened before,” Sheriff Burks said. “We've had no other reports of this; nobody else has come forward." KCEN tried to contact Jackson for comment, leaving a voicemail on his cell phone and sending him an email. He had not responded to the requests as of Friday evening. ORIGINAL STORY CORYELL COUNTY -- A youth pastor with Coryell Community Church is in jail on multiple charges including sexual assault of a child. Wil Jackson, 32, was booked into the Coryell County Jail late Thursday night. He's also charged with Indecency with a Child. According to the church website, Jackson started serving in student ministry in 2004. He's been married since 2002 and has two children. Coryell County Sheriff says the Jackson bonded out of jail on Friday afternoon. No additional details about the charges against Jackson have been released.
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