FLORIDA
Fox 13
LAKELAND (FOX 13) –
A former church youth minister has been arrested for having sex with a 15-year-old member of a local congregation.
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office arrested 30-year-old Phillip Kendrick II Tuesday on three counts of lewd battery and other charges after the current pastor of Mt. Tabor Baptist Church called and reported the relationship.
Investigators learned Kendrick and the young girl had sex at least three times and exchanged nude photos of one another over a course of three months, between October of 2014 and January of 2015.
Deputies said the church pastor told them that Kendrick stopped serving as a youth minister in October, but he still attended the church.
According to detectives, Kendrick met the 15-year-old victim in a church youth group during his time as a youth minister about four years ago.
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