Youth Minister from Stuart Arrested in Marion County on Child-sex Charges

By Austin L. Miller
Ocala.com
October 6, 2015

http://www.ocala.com/article/20151006/articles/151009861

Jeffrey B. Mobley

FBI agents arrested a former Stuart youth minister Monday on suspicion of sexually abusing at least two girls under his care.

Jeffrey Brian Mobley, 24, was taken for a hearing Monday in federal court, where he was ordered held without bail until a detention hearing and preliminary examination on Oct. 7.

He was picked up in the 11000 block of West State Road 40 in Marion County and is charged with persuading, inducing, or enticing someone under 18 to engage in sexual activity. Mobley, a former youth pastor at The Grace Place Church in Stuart, declined an interview request from the Star-Banner.

If convicted as charged, Mobley could face from 10 years to life in prison, and possibly a lifetime of supervised release, according to a Justice Department news release. He would also have to register as a sexual offender.

Last month, the mother of a 15-year-old girl reported to the Martin County Sheriff’s Office she was suspicious of Mobley’s relationship with her daughter, according to federal officials. The teen had told her she was spending time at school with a guidance counselor, but her mother later discovered her daughter was not in school.

The woman said she later found out Mobley was picking the girl up from school.

In an interview with a Martin County sheriff's detective, the teen said she and Mobley had sex several times at his home and a hotel.

From surveillance footage, officials were able to confirm the two did meet at the hotel. A cellphone she used showed the two having sex, officials said. And the two also communicated via Twitter, sharing explicit photos.

Investigators learned of another girl, who told them that, when she was either 16 or 17, Mobley allowed her to drink alcohol and the two had several sexual experiences. She said they exchanged naked pictures via Twitter.

Federal officials then obtained a warrant for his arrest. They did not wish to disclose the circumstances of Mobley's arrest in Ocala.

Contact Austin L. Miller at 867-4118, austin.miller@starbanner.com or @almillerosb.