A 45-year-old pastor from Texas reportedly drugged then raped the 15-year-old girl he was supposedly "counseling" at church multiple times.
The Christian Post said the Vernon First Assembly of God Pastor Brian Pounds was arrested for multiple accounts of raping the teen several times in June in various locations including their church. The teen was drugged with methamphetamines prior to being violated and was recently hospitalized because of their last encounter.
Pounds was arrested with his wife on the account of "sexual assault of a child and delivery of a controlled substance to a child" with a bail of $200,000.
The redacted affidavit showed that the Vernon Police Department was issued by the 46th Judicial District with a warrant of arrest for Pounds against the teenager who goes by the pseudonym "Jane Doe." Doe's mother found her on July 1 at Walmart and was brought to the police where she narrated what happened to her in the nearby motel. The police arrested Pounds who denied Doe's "allegations" against him.
Based on investigation, the motel room was registered under Pounds' name and the First Assembly of God Church. Doe was taken to the United Regional Health Care in Wichita Falls were she tested positive for methamphetamine and was admitted due to "medical complications" it brought her.
The affidavit also disclosed that Pounds "groomed" Doe so that he could engage in sexual intercourse with her "while furnishing Jane Doe illegal narcotics to help carry out the scheme." The affidavit concluded that based on "the visual and physical evidence collected," Pounds "committed the offense of Sexual Assault by knowingly and intentionally have intercourse with" Doe "against the laws of the State."
According to the affidavit, Pounds got Doe a job cleaning houses for the elderly before he met her at church. The affidavit narrated that Doe had two sexual encounters with Pounds in the church before she was brought to the motel on July 1.
"Pounds started offering Jane Doe methamphetamine at the church. Pounds continued to meet with Jane Doe at the church for what Jane Doe described as counseling. Jane Doe said Pounds would offer her methamphetamine while at the church," the affidavit said.
"Jane Doe said during the course of having sexual intercourse, Pounds placed both hands on her neck and choked her," the affidavit continued.
The Christian Post said they tried to get comments from the Vernon First Assembly of God but their calls were left unanswered.
Last month a Lifeway Research survey revealed that 83% of Protestant pastors believe that church leaders who commit sexual assault on a child regardless of age or an adult should be removed permanently from the ministry. While the rest believe that the said church leader should be given a suspension or sabbatical from the ministry for a couple of years.
"The five years or less time frame, that 7% of pastors suggest is appropriate, does not even cover the length of the typical prison sentence for offenders convicted of sexual abuse. In contrast, more than 10 times that number of pastors do not hesitate to say the disqualification from ministry should be permanent for a pastor who commits child sexual abuse," Lifeway Research Executive Director Scott McConnell said regarding the survey results.
