Church Youth Volunteer Accused of Sexually Abusing a Dozen Male Students

WEST VIRGINIA
Christian Post

BY MORGAN LEE , CHRISTIAN POST REPORTER
November 27, 2013

Close to a dozen males have come forward to accuse a West Virginia man and former church youth volunteer of sexually abusing them as minors.

While the West Virginia State Police has not disclosed the man’s name, Westminster Presbyterian Church has confirmed that the suspect “has volunteered in various capacities for the church, including with youth trips that required chaperones.”

The church’s senior pastor, Jonathan Rockness, also claimed that while the Bluefield’s church had alerted authorities at the beginning of the year, the police initially did not find enough information to prosecute him.

“In June, the police reported back to us that they would not be pursuing the case, as the behavior we reported was inappropriate, but not actionable,” Rockness said in a statement shared with WOAY Television. “Even though the legal authorities declined to pursue the case any further, the leadership of the church was not satisfied that we had gotten to the bottom of the situation.”

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