Negative Stories in the War on Child Sexual Abuse - Episode VIII > Trudeau Cancels Funding, Exploitation Exploding, 290,000 Girls to be Cut

Program to help women, girls escape sex trafficking cancelled due to lack of federal funding

Trudeau and the federal Liberals have now committed about $300 billion dollars to every demographic they can think of, with no questions asked. 

Despite a myriad of stories and warnings of spousal abuse and child sexual abuse increasing what was already staggering numbers, while under lockdown, Trudeau has not dedicated a cent to the most vulnerable demographic in Canada, women and children. In fact, it now appears he is reneging on a previous paltry commitment for one element of abuse - child sex trafficking.

Jonathan Juha
London Free Press

The London Abused Women’s Centre (LAWC) is shuttering a program that helps human-trafficking victims due to a lack of funding, though it’s unclear whether federal cash may revive it in the future.

For now, the money is not available and the agency’s executive director believes Ottawa has reneged on a promise to support such programs. However, a local Liberal MP says the money will be there, just not yet.

Funding for the program that is closing May 29, and through which LAWC has supported more than 3,100 women and girls involved in the sex trade during the last five years, ended in April.

But the local agency was hoping to access new funds — announced last year by the federal government to fight human trafficking — to continue to provide and enhance its services, which include counselling and an outreach worker on the street helping women and girls being exploited.

That money hasn’t materialized.

London Abused Women’s Centre executive director Megan Walker speaks during a press conference detailing a campaign to reduce sex trafficking in Southwestern Ontario in London, Ont. on Wednesday January 23, 2019.

(Derek Ruttan/The London Free Press)

“I don’t want anybody to think we were just turned down for funding because that’s not the case,” said Megan Walker, LAWC’s executive director.

“It was a matter of nobody giving any money to fund human trafficking programs across the country.”

Walker says her agency, and others across the country, applied for funding under the government’s national strategy to combat human trafficking since October.

But despite multiple inquiries, they were never given a straight answer as to what was happening with money, even as funding for existing programs was about to expire.

“I have been given about 15 different reasons why no agency has been provided with funding,” Walker said.

Liberal MP Peter Fragiskatos said he understood the negative impact lack of funding will have on agencies doing work he deemed vital in the community.

“This is not an outcome that I want, and I’m certainly not pleased,” he said. “I wish the funding would have continued to be provided.”

London North Centre MP Peter Fragiskatos

(Derek Ruttan/The London Free Press)

But he disagreed with the notion the federal government is not committed to doing its part in the fight against human trafficking, calling the $75 million the government promised as part of its national strategy “an historic amount.”

“I think that’s a clear sign on the part of the government that we are absolutely serious and steadfast in our commitment to assist efforts to combat human trafficking and that includes assisting organizations on the front lines,” he said, adding the government will engage in talks with agencies and stakeholders in the months to come to best decide how to distribute the funds.

Liberals always know the right thing to say; they just don't know the right thing to do.

For Walker, however, that’s little consolation, calling human trafficking in London, whose size and proximity to Highway 401 has made the city a hub for sex trafficking, a crisis.

“If there’s a commitment to help women and girls, and there’s money to fulfill the commitment, then why are they sitting on it? It does not make sense,” Walker said. “I don’t trust that there’s a commitment.”

She also took issue with the fact the federal government has been quick to release new funds to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, but has taken this long to provide funds for programs supporting some of the community’s most vulnerable groups.

“If their commitment doesn’t recognize that as a crisis and are allowing us to shut down our program, there’s something pretty wrong with the way they’re doing business,” she said.

Abused and exploited women and children do not make a lot of noise. They have no voice of their own. Consequently, they have no influence on how people vote. So, they are of no interest to the federal Liberal party. 

290,000 girls will be 'cut' in Somalia in 2020

Somalia: Ramadan, the “traditional time for girls to be cut,”

sees “huge increase” in female genital mutilation

BY ROBERT SPENCER

Why is Ramadan, the month in which Muslims redouble their efforts to please Allah, the “traditional time for girls to be cut”? Reuters shows no curiosity about this. The answer is because female genital mutilation has justification in Islamic law, and Islamic law is considered divine law, superseding all human law.

This story repeats the usual establishment media line: “People in countries where FGM is still common attempt to link it to religion, but the practice has nothing to do with any faith and predates both Christianity and Islam. It has also been denounced by religious leaders worldwide.”

That is only partially true, at best.

Yes, “people in countries where FGM is still common attempt to link it to religion”: “It is a religious thing. Do you want to change religion?” said one Egyptian in response to a campaign to eradicate female genital mutilation. “You only listen to what the West is saying.”

However, the establishment media ignores the fact that actually FGM is mandated in Islamic law: “Circumcision is obligatory (for every male and female) (by cutting off the piece of skin on the glans of the penis of the male, but circumcision of the female is by cutting out the bazr ‘clitoris’ [this is called khufaadh ‘female circumcision’]).” — Umdat al-Salik e4.3, translated by Mark Durie, The Third Choice, p. 64

Why is it obligatory? Because Muhammad is held to have said so: “Abu al- Malih ibn Usama’s father relates that the Prophet said: ‘Circumcision is a law for men and a preservation of honour for women.’” — Ahmad Ibn Hanbal 5:75

“Narrated Umm Atiyyah al-Ansariyyah: A woman used to perform circumcision in Medina. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said to her: ‘Do not cut severely as that is better for a woman and more desirable for a husband.’” — Abu Dawud 41:5251

That hadith is classified as weak, but this one is classified as sahih (reliable): “Aishah narrated: ‘When the circumcised meets the circumcised, then indeed Ghusl is required. Myself and Allah’s Messenger did that, so we performed Ghusl.’” — Jami` at-Tirmidhi 108

If Muhammad had the genitals of his favorite wife, Aisha, mutilated, that is a strong endorsement of the practice from the man who is an “excellent example” (Qur’an 33:21) for Muslims.

Why does it matter whether or not FGM is Islamic? Because the practice will never be eradicated if its root causes are not confronted. As long as those Muslims continue to believe that Allah and Muhammad want it done, for some that will override all other considerations, in Sudan and everywhere else.

“Somalia Sees ‘Massive’ Rise in FGM During Lockdown and Ramadan,” by Emma Batha, Reuters, May 18, 2020 (thanks to The Religion of Peace):

Somalia’s coronavirus lockdown has led to a huge increase in female genital mutilation (FGM), with circumcisers going door to door offering to cut girls stuck at home during the pandemic, a charity said on Monday.

Plan International said the crisis was undermining efforts to eradicate the practice in Somalia, which has the world’s highest FGM rate, with about 98% of women having been cut.

“We’ve seen a massive increase in recent weeks,” said Sadia Allin, Plan International’s head of mission in Somalia….

She told the Thomson Reuters Foundation nurses across the country had also reported a surge in requests from parents wanting them to carry out FGM on their daughters while they were off school because of the lockdown.

FGM, which affects 200 million girls and women globally, involves the partial or total removal of the external genitalia. In Somalia the vaginal opening is also often sewn up – a practice called infibulation.

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has warned that the pandemic could lead to an extra two million girls worldwide being cut in the next decade as the crisis stymies global efforts to end the practice.

Allin said families in Somalia were taking advantage of school closures to carry out FGM so that the girls had time to recover from the ritual, which can take weeks.

The economic downturn caused by coronavirus has also spurred cutters to tout for more business, she said. “The cutters have been knocking on doors, including mine, asking if there are young girls they can cut. I was so shocked,” said Allin, who has two daughters aged five and nine.

She said restrictions on movement during the lockdown were making it harder to raise awareness of the dangers of FGM in communities….

The UNFPA, which estimates 290,000 girls will be cut in Somalia in 2020, said the spike was also linked to Ramadan, which is a traditional time for girls to be cut….

Child sexual abuse online up 250% in 3 years in Philippines

Horrid statistics below

By: Ador Vincent Mayol - Senior Reporter / Inquirer Visayas 

CEBU CITY, Cebu, Philippines — Cases of internet-based sexual exploitation of children in the Philippines continued to go up, with eight out of every 10 perpetrators related by blood or affinity to the victims, according to a new study.

The study, conducted by the International Justice Mission (IJM), found that the estimated number of internet protocol (IP) addresses used for internet-based child sexual exploitation in the country rose 250 percent from 23,333 in 2014 to 81,723 in 2017.

“The results of the study show that Osec (online sexual exploitation of children) is a growing and heinous crime,” Justice Undersecretary Emmeline Aglipay-Villar said in a statement released by the IJM. Villar is in charge of the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking of the Department of Justice (DOJ).

“We need to act as a global community — ending impunity in both source countries like the Philippines,’’ she said. “The Philippine government is committed to sustaining our collaboration with international law enforcement agencies in combating this threat against our children.”

The IJM released on May 21 the study titled “Online Sexual Exploitation of Children in the Philippines: Analysis and Recommendations for Governments, Industry and Civil Society.”

Child porn on FB

Authorities have asked Facebook to give up data of those behind the “alarming proliferation” of pages on the social media platform that promote child pornography during the COVID-19 community quarantine.

The DOJ, the National Bureau of Investigation and the Philippine National Police said the platform was being used to distribute and publish child sexual exploitation materials (CSEM) online.

Certain Facebook pages with suggestive names are used to promote and facilitate exchanges of child pornography among the members, the law enforcement agencies said in a statement.

The administrators and members of such Facebook pages manage to evade law enforcers by regularly changing their names and keeping the pages private.

The agencies asked the public to report to law enforcement authorities goings-on on Facebook “that tend to prejudice a child’s physical, moral, spiritual, intellectual, emotional, psychological and social well-being.”

Horrid statistics

The IJM study, conducted from 2017 to 2019, stated that the Philippines was a “global hot spot” for children’s abuse online.

It examined 90 cases that were investigated between 2011 and 2017, involving 381 victims.

Among the 43 victims for whom the exact length of abuse was known, the average length of abuse was two years, ranging from two months to four years.

An analysis of victim profiles showed that the median age was only 11, with the youngest less than 1 year old.

Another unsettling finding, IJM said, was that 41 percent of the abuses were facilitated by biological parents and 42 percent by other relatives—or at least 83 percent by people related to child victims.

The study, however, was unable to measure the prevalence of Osec—a subset of internet-based child sexual exploitation—due to inconsistencies in the quality of reporting by electronic service providers (ESPs) and because ESPs are not currently detecting livestreamed abuse.

Since technology was yet to be developed or deployed by ESPs to detect livestreamed abuse, the IJM said it was often uncovered only when a foreign law enforcement agency identified an offender for a different but related offense like possession or sharing of CSEM.

Foreign authorities’ referrals

The study revealed that 64 percent of Philippine Osec cases were initiated by referrals from foreign authorities.

“The tech industry should prioritize detection of all child sexual exploitation materials—especially newly created CSEM and livestreaming—because of the gravity of harm that repeated sexual exploitation causes victims,” IJM Philippines director Samson Inocencio Jr. said in a press statement.

“There are children who need rescue now, but rescue starts with timely detection and robust reporting,” he added.

The study recommended legislation expanding ESP reporting requirements to make CyberTipline reports more useful to law enforcement; greater international law enforcement collaboration, such as placing foreign police liaisons in source countries; and implementing child-protective measures and trauma-informed care from rescue to reintegration.

It also proposed increasing Osec-dedicated staffing, budget and collaboration among law enforcement agencies, and improving collaboration in information and intelligence-sharing, measurement and data collection and research on Osec.

The study was made in partnership with the government, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and other concerned parties under the US-Philippines Child Protection Compact Partnership between the US Department of State’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons and the Philippine government.

Child Exploitation Complaints Rise 106% To Hit 2 Million In Just One Month: Is COVID-19 To Blame?

Thomas Brewster Forbes Staff

There’s been a huge spike in reports of online child sexual exploitation during the time of COVID-19, Forbes has learned.

The U.S.-based nonprofit the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) said it had recorded a 106% increase in CyberTipline reports of suspected child sexual exploitation—rising from 983,734 reports in March 2019 to 2,027,520 in the same month this year. 

The CyberTipline is huge not only for law enforcement—which initiates investigations based on tips—but also for tech companies like Facebook, Google and other social media platforms. The U.S. tech industry files reports of child exploitation images and videos found on their sites and apps to NCMEC, which then triages the tips and sends them to the relevant police agency.

Some sources have linked the rise in online child abuse to lockdowns enforced by national governments in response to COVID-19. “Due to the confinement and the fact that now, everybody, including our children, are spending more time online means there is increasing exposure to these operators who are looking for opportunities to engage with them and to contact them,” acting head of Europol’s European Cybercrime Center Fernando Ruiz told Forbes.

Other current and former American police officers told Forbes they’d also seen a sharp increase in child abuse, but not only online. There’s also been a jump in physical abuse at home. 

“We’ve seen a very significant rise because, if we think about it, for some children, we are locking them in the house. With the person who’s victimized, their only escape is outside the house,” said one, who asked to remain anonymous as they weren’t authorized to talk on the record. “And we’re adding stressors, like that person [the victimizer] may have financial concerns because they're out of a job, and all those things are boiling over. So it’s not just sexual abuse, but physical physical violence against family.”

But, despite the assumed link between COVID-19 stay-at-home orders and increased child abuse, a NCMEC spokesperson said it couldn’t be so sure about the connection. It may be that the reason for the rise in fact stems from the fact that more people are working from home and have more time on their hands to report illegal imagery.

“A significant factor contributing to the dramatic increase are several child sexual abuse videos that went ‘viral’ in recent weeks,” the spokesperson added. “In one case, the video was widely shared because people were outraged and trying to help identify and rescue the victim.”

They added, however, that kids and adults are spending more time online, “so there’s likely an impact of more reports or more incidents—we just don’t know how big of an impact.”

Dark web discussion

The spokesperson noted, however, that it had heard of “instances where child predators are using the dark net to discuss stay-at-home orders and use the opportunity to entice children to produce sexually explicit material.” The dark net, or deep web, is the part of the internet that’s routed through what’s known as the Tor Network, which sends website visitors through multiple servers and encrypts all their traffic to protect users’ privacy.

Europol’s Ruiz confirmed that his investigators had seen the same. “We have seen how in some posts uploaded to [dark web] forums they talk about seizing the opportunity of this confinement and the increased exposure of children online as a possibility to access them and increase production of material.”

If you’re one of those people who publicly shared abuse material in the hope that it’ll help increase awareness, you might want to stop. As the NCMEC spokesperson noted, it’s illegal to share images and videos of child sexual abuse, even if you’re trying to help.

Wolves Among the Sheep > Amish Bishop, Refuge, Man of God, LDS Bishop, Youth Pastors

Amish church bishop in Lancaster County charged with failing to report suspected child sexual abuse to authorities

WGAL News 8

PEQUEA TOWNSHIP, Pa. —

A church bishop in Lancaster County is charged with failure to report suspected child sexual abuse to authorities.

Levi Esh Sr., 63, served as bishop of two Amish churches when a member of his congregation in Pequea Township confessed to him in 2012 or 2013 to the sexual abuse of three girls, the district attorney's office said.

Charges filed by police allege that Esh did not contact police or social services, and the matter "was handled internally" instead.

According to prosecutors, police became aware of the incident after members of the Amish community had conversations with Esh and other bishops and ministers in October 2019. The community members were told to "let it go" and that it had "been taken care of," prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said 41-year-old John Beiler, of Providence Township, made the confession to Esh. Beiler was charged last week with counts of sexual abuse related to crimes against three girls between 2011 and 2015, the district attorney's office said.

Pequea Twnshp, Pa

4 Minors Accuse Concord, NC, Church Pastor

of Sexual Assault

The Refuge Church, Kannapolis

41-year-old pastor Brian Mahiques has been arrested for allegedly sexually abusing at least four minors, including at least two youth group members.

Mahiques was first arrested on May 7 after the first two alleged victims came forward. He was initially charged with two counts of statutory sexual offense of a child and three counts of indecent liberties with a minor.

Two more alleged victims have recently come forward and Mahiques now faces additional charges of one count of statutory sexual offense and three counts of indecent liberties with a minor.

The sum of charges against Mahiques is now three counts of statutory sex offense of a child and six counts of indecent liberties with a minor.

Concord police say one of the alleged victims recently told their parents that they had been sexually abused by Mahiques several times between 2005-2006 when Mahiques was their youth pastor at The Refuge Church.

A second victim came forward during the initial investigation and also reported that Mahiques had sexually abused them during the same time period. This second alleged victim was also a youth group member at The Refuge Church.

Both of these alleged victims were under 16 years old at the time of the alleged abuse and both told investigators that some incidents happened at youth events and on Refuge Church property.

It is not clear if the two additional victims were also youth group members.

This investigation is ongoing and Concord Police investigators are working to determine if there are any other victims.

Judge gives Tn pastor who raped daughter, 14, a soft prison sentence ‘because he is a man of God’

..

The pastor was sentenced to 12 years in jail,

60 years less than the maximum term

Molly Rose Pike, The Sun, UK
19 May 2019

A PASTOR who raped his own 14-year-old daughter for two years was given a soft prison sentence because he is a "man of God".

David Richards, 41, was sentenced to 12 years in jail, 60 years less than the maximum term sought by prosecutors.

His daughter Amber (pictured), who has waived her right to anonymity, said she believes he could attack another girl.

Judge Steven Sword cited his work as a pastor and the Bible study group he began in jail as mitigating factors in the lenient sentence.

They should both be factors for increasing his sentence, the first as an aggravating factor, and the second for the good of the prison. It's a shame we have such low expectations of "a man of God".

Richards, of Knox County Tennessee, was found guilty of rape, incest and sexual battery by an authority figure for abusing his adopted daughter for two years, Knoxville News Sentinel reports.

His daughter Amber, who has waived her right to anonymity, said she believes he could attack another girl, "given the opportunity".

'HE COULD DO IT AGAIN'

In an emotional victim statement, she said: "I wanted to throw my body away. Not a day goes by that I don’t, in some way, think of what he did to me.

"I firmly believe if given the opportunity, he would victimise another girl,’ she continued."

Richards continued to maintain his innocence throughout the trial and attempted to paint his accuser as a rebellious teenager who first made her allegations of sexual abuse to act out against his strict rules for his children.

Forensic testing uncovered the presence of his semen on the girl's bed frame.

Richards said: "I stand before you convicted of crimes I did not commit. I simply believe the system just erred in this case. I’m not sure why I’m here… but I assume it’s for His (God’s) purpose."

An unrepentant pastor does not deserve any leniency. He is obviously a liar and not a man of God!

I didn't really do this for me I did it so it didn't happen

to anyone else, so nobody's in the same situation as I am

..

Amber Richards 

Speaking after her dad was found guilty in February, Amber said: "I'm glad I can finally move on with my life.

"I didn't really do this for me I did it so it didn't happen to anyone else, so nobody's in the same situation as I am, especially kids, they don't deserve to go through things to do that.

"If I have to be the one to make sure that it never happens again I don't mind doing that."

Richards was formerly a pastor at My Father’s House Church of God in Lenoir City.

More than 30 members of his congregation sat on his side of the courtroom to show their support on Thursday.

David Thompson, who shared ministry duties with Richards, testified in his defence, saying "I find it impossible for me to believe he’s guilty of this. His business needs him. His family needs him. Our church needs him."

There are invariably people who will believe their pastor is a good and holy man regardless of what he has done. Is it partly because they refuse to believe that they have been fooled for so many years? That they have invited a wolf into the sheep-pen?

Richards is seeking a new trial.

Ex-Latter-day Saint bishop to now be prosecuted
in federal court on child porn charge

Dennis Romboy, Deseret News

SALT LAKE CITY (Deseret News)— A former Latter-day Saint bishop arrested last fall for allegedly possessing and distributing what state investigators called “child sexual abuse material” will now be prosecuted in federal court.

Timothy James Hallows, 62, of Kaysville, pleaded not guilty to possession of child pornography during an initial appearance in U.S. District Court last Friday. The charge filed May 8 alleges Hallows possessed material containing an illicit image of a child under the age of 12.

A change of plea hearing is scheduled for June 30. Defendants typically plead guilty in those hearings as part of an agreement with prosecutors. i.e. - a plea deal!

Hallows was bishop of the Wellington Ward in the Kaysville Utah Stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints when he was arrested in October and later charged with eight counts of sexual exploitation of a minor in 2nd District Court in Davis County.

Hallows “admitted to distributing child sexual abuse material” on Skype and to sexual gratification to prepubescent children, according to a police affidavit filed in state court.

“Hallows stated the children are not real, and provided several incidents of justification and rationalization for the conduct,” a Davis County sheriff’s deputy wrote in the affidavit. Investigators noted that Hallows held a special position of trust as a bishop, including “unfettered” access to children in his congregation and in private.

The state charges will be dismissed as the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Davis County Attorney’s Office decided to pursue the case in federal court. U.S. Attorney John Huber said federal and county prosecutors regularly work together on child exploitation cases to find the best venue to prosecute the case.

“County prosecutors and law enforcement officers are very experienced in investigating and prosecuting these cases, but they can be limited, candidly, by low state sentences,” Huber said. “The tools we have in federal court can bring very significant, very appropriate sentences. In this case, it made sense to prosecute the defendant in federal court.”

Federal judges consider a number of factors when imposing a sentence for possession of child pornography, including the number of images, use of a computer, distribution of the images, the defendant’s abuse of a position of trust to hide the offense, the ages of the children in the images and the defendant’s criminal history, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Multiple counts do not change the sentence because the court is aware of each image the defendant possessed regardless of the number of criminal charges.

Microsoft Online Operations filed a complaint on Oct. 6 with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that a user uploaded and made publicly available child sexual exploitation material to or from a Skype account. Phoenix police initially investigated the cases because the IP address tracked to a Holiday Inn in Arizona. Investigators determined it belonged to Hallows.

A search warrant was executed at Hallows’ home in Kaysville. The affidavit says investigators located “thousands of images of pornography, including many images of child sexual abuse.”

Eric Hawkins, a spokesman for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-days Saints, called the allegations serious and deeply troubling after Hallows’ arrest last October.

“When local leaders learned of these allegations, this individual was immediately removed from any position that would place him in close contact with youth or children. This is done to ensure the safety of others and to allow this individual to address these serious allegations,” he said then in a prepared statement.

Hawkins said the church has no tolerance for abuse of any kind, including child pornography, and teaches its members and leaders that such behavior is offensive to God and to his church.

Not to mention the children!

Abuser kept job at Modesto, Ca, church for 3 years

after teen reported molestation, lawsuit says

BY ERIN TRACY
Modesto Bee

Carl Epperson said when he was 13-years-old he was molested by a youth pastor at his Modesto church.

The abuse was reported to church leaders and the Modesto Police Department but the youth pastor, Robert Chapman, wasn’t fired or arrested.

Instead, Epperson said church leaders blindsided him by bringing him into a room with his alleged abuser, who got to tell “his side of the story,” and the detectives assigned to the case treated him like a suspect by questioning his sexuality and threatening him with juvenile hall if he was lying.

During the following three years, Chapman molested at least two more boys until he was arrested and convicted in 1987.

More than 30 years later, Epperson and another man who was molested by Chapman, Larry Spencer, are suing the church, claiming those who ran it failed to protect them when they were boys.

It’s the third lawsuit against CrossPoint Community Church, formally First Baptist Church, alleging its leaders covered up childhood sexual abuse by its employees for more than a decade.

The church already settled with one victim, Jennifer Roach, in the amount of $267,500 for abuse by youth pastor Brad Tebbutt in the late 1980s. In October, it was served with a second lawsuit by Tracy Epler, who said she was abused by a different youth pastor, Les Hughey, in the 1970s.

Wow! That's astonishing! 3 predator youth pastors in one decade. This church has a remarkable ability to seek out wolves in sheep's clothing and then pay them to live among the sheep. Was there no discernment whatsoever in that church? Was nobody listening to God?

The abuse “could have been prevented completely if people did their jobs and meant what they said when they said their priority is protecting children, not protecting abusers,” said Maricar A. Pascual, an attorney with the law offices of Joseph C. George, who is representing the men.

The Sacramento-based firm, which specializes in sexual abuse cases, has represented all of the plaintiffs in the suits against CrossPoint.

The complaint filed in Stanislaus Superior Court on behalf of Epperson and Spencer in February alleges negligent supervision or retention of an employee, negligent supervision of the plaintiffs when they were minors, failure to report childhood sexual abuse and childhood sexual abuse.

Chapman had only been employed at the church a few months as an organist when he asked the youth leaders if he could take on a role as a youth pastor, Pascual said.

Epperson said he’d heard Chapman specifically asked to work with boys.

According to the complaint, Chapman led a “Disciples Group ... which was supposed to help young teen boys with issues related to reaching puberty.”

In April 1983, Chapman recruited Epperson and another boy to help him keep watch and prevent vandalism of a large tent that was set up on the church grounds for an upcoming event. After keeping watch, the boys went to sleep in Chapman’s camper, where Epperson was awakened by Chapman rubbing his chest, according to the complaint.

“(Chapman) subsequently fondled and masturbated (Epperson),” the complaint says.

REPORT MADE TO FIRST BAPTIST, MODESTO POLICE

About four months later, Epperson told his girlfriend what happened and she told Epperson’s mother, who reported the abuse to the church hierarchy and the Modesto Police, according to the complaint.

Epperson said on Aug. 28, 1983, his 14th birthday, he and his father were called to a meeting at the church with the lead pastor, two youth pastors and Chapman, who denied anything happened.

At the end of the meeting “I remember them shaking my dad’s hand and telling him, ‘We have to stand behind our man until we hear otherwise,’ ” he said.

Not long after, two detectives showed up at Epperson’s school, pulled him out of class and interrogated him, according to the complaint.  OMG!

“Those two events really changed who I was,” Epperson said. “At that age I got a very clear view of how the police acted and people who I thought were God-fearing folks acted, and it made me think the world is a corrupt place.”

The detectives told Epperson that Chapman had passed a lie detector test and that he also could take one, but he would be arrested if he failed, the complaint says.

“They said I would be serving three to five years in California Youth Authority if I was lying,” Epperson said. “They asked, ‘Did you like it? Did you enjoy it? Did you ever think you might be homosexual?’ I remember telling myself, ‘You know what happened, don’t let these guys falsify what you know is true.’ ”

The detectives closed the case as unfounded and Chapman maintained his position at the church.

“Accordingly, (Chapman) continued to have access to sexually abuse minors, including (Larry Spencer), until another police report was made” three years later, according to the complaint.

During those three years, Larry Spencer was molested an average of two times a month, according to the complaint.

When reached by phone in May, Spencer did not comment for this story but told The Bee in a 2018 interview that he was 13 when he was first molested during a sleepover hosted by Chapman.

The evening discussion was about puberty and masturbation, Spencer said. Then they watched movies and drifted off to sleep. Spencer, like Epperson, said he woke up to Chapman touching him.

Chapman continued molesting him, in the car while giving him rides home from church, and in the swimming pool during youth activities, Spencer said.

It was in 1986 when he saw Chapman become inappropriate with his younger foster brother that Spencer decided to come forward.

‘ENOUGH IS ENOUGH’

“I said, ‘Enough’s enough. This guy’s going to screw somebody else up,’ ” Spencer said.

That time, Chapman was prosecuted. He was charged with molesting Spencer, Epperson and another boy. Pascual said the third victim might also join the civil lawsuit but has not yet decided.

A negotiated deal ended with Chapman pleading guilty to two counts of child molestation in return for a 300-day term in County Jail.

Wow! 300 days. Another 'man of God'?

Chapman, who is now in his 80s and still living in Modesto, told The Bee this month that he hadn’t yet been served with the civil complaint. He declined to comment further.

The complaint was filed in February but the defendants were listed in it as Does. Pascual confirmed CrossPoint Community Church and Chapman are the defendants and said they will be served when she files the amended complaint soon.

CrossPoint’s lead pastor, Matt Whiteford, did not respond to a request for comment.

This Week's Catholic Pervs n Paedos List

Catholic Priest Arrested After 11 y/o Girl

Recorded Herself Being Molested

(The AEGIS Alliance) – TRENTOLA DUCENTA, ITALY – An 11-year-old Italian girl is being praised as a hero after she used her smartphone to provide proof of being sexually abused by a Catholic priest.

59-year-old Father Michele Mottola was arrested this past week in Trentola Ducenta, Italy, which is near Naples. The arrest came after audio recordings of the priest and the girl were provided to local media.

Angello Spinillo, the bishop of Aversa, became aware of these allegations in May of 2018 at the earliest and Mottola had gottten suspended at the time. The bishop also reported the allegations to the Public Prosecutor of the Commissariat of Aversa. Unfortunately there was no further action against the priest at the time.

Nearly one and a half years later, action has now been taken only after the recording was aired on the political TV show Le Lene. Orders were then given by the Public Prosecutor’s Office in Naples to arrest the priest.

There are several occasions that the audio was recorded, and there are several highly disturbing passages within it.

“Look, there’s nobody there. You are scared? Embrace me, kiss me.” Mottola’s voice is heard saying in one, translations were made by Church Militant.

“Do you know that I love you? Do you want a little kiss?” Mottola said in another.

A child is heard whimpering in one of the audio clips, and repeatedly tells the priest to stop.

“Take this to dry yourself,” Mottola is heard saying in another audio clip, the girl is in tears and her protests are heard.

The child recorded being repeatedly abused after attempts by her mother to inform local parishioners had failed. The recordings were the child’s last resort.

In one of the recordings, the innocent girl is heard pleading with the priest to stop abusing her. The child is heard telling the priest that she told people who work within the church, but the priest is heard telling her to not tell lies.

“You didn’t have to do it, because now they will understand other things. Things will get very bad. I will come to your home to talk to your parents.” Mottola said to the girl.

Mottola even tried to persuade and silence the girl by comparing her to ISIS DAESH suicide bombers.

“You can tell lies. Do you understand you can lie? You’re like Islamic suicide bombers, throwing a bomb, killing people and leaving. The mud ends up also on your family and on you,” Mottola is heard saying in the audio.

Mottola is heard taking a more gentle approach in another audio clip, “Can you say that you have invented everything to the limit? “Everything … that I took you to the bedroom … everything. So, we take this mess out of the way. We can pretend that it never happened. We don’t talk about it anymore, okay?”

Following the audio clips being released to the public by La Lene, the girl’s mother said she is proud of the willingness by her daughter.

“I am proud of my daughter, she was more cunning than the priest,” the girl’s mother said.

Trentola Ducenta, IT

'Evidence of a cover up': Woman wins bid to sue

London, Ont, diocese, again, over sexual abuse

Paola Loriggio
The Canadian Press

TORONTO, ONT -- An Ontario woman has won her bid to sue the London Diocese of the Roman Catholic Church for a second time over the sexual abuse she suffered as a child at the hands of a priest.

Irene Deschenes initially filed a lawsuit in 1996 alleging she was sexually abused by Father Charles Sylvestre in the early 1970s, and that the London diocese failed to prevent it.

She settled out of court in 2000 after the diocese maintained it didn't know of any concerns regarding Sylvestre or his behaviour until the late 1980s -- long after what happened to Deschenes.

Court documents show that in 2006, Sylvestre pleaded guilty to having sexually assaulted 47 girls under the age of 18, including Deschenes.

It also came to light that the diocese had received police statements in 1962 alleging the priest had assaulted three girls, prompting Deschenes to seek to scrap her settlement and file a new suit.

A motion judge ruled to allow the new legal action, but the diocese appealed -- a challenge that was unanimously dismissed by the province's top court this week.

Deschenes's lawyer praised her client's "strength and conviction" in pursuing the case, and said Deschenes is "thrilled" the Appeal Court upheld the decision to set aside the settlement.

"The court said that Irene relied on the church's false statements and they induced her to settle her case back in 2006," Loretta Merritt said in an email. "The court agreed that the overarching principles of justice and fairness trumped the finality of settlements and there was evidence of a cover up."

Court documents show Deschenes was a student at St. Ursula Catholic School and a member of St. Ursula's Parish in Chatham, Ont., when she was sexually assaulted. Sylvestre was ordained in the late 1940s and retired in 1993, the document say. Media reports indicate he died in jail in 2007.

Media reports don't say, he's been burning in Hell ever since!

In its appeal, the diocese argued that no one in a position of authority was aware of the police statements at the time the settlement was reached, because the bishop who knew about them had died. But the Appeal Court said rescinding the settlement was warranted given that the diocese had made an "innocent misrepresentation."

While the motion judge at times used incorrect and confusing terminology, the court said, he applied the correct legal analysis in arriving at that conclusion.

The diocese "made a representation that was false when it stated repeatedly, including under oath, that no one knew that there was any reason to be concerned about Father Sylvestre's behaviour before Ms. Deschenes claimed to have been assaulted by him," it wrote.

"The motion judge's conclusions that there was a misrepresentation by the diocese, that it was material, and that it was relied on by Ms. Deschenes in concluding the settlement, as well as his conclusion that it would be fair and just to rescind the settlement agreement in the circumstances, reveal no error."

Evidence that the diocese had previously tried to cover up allegations of sexual assault was also "relevant to the consideration of fairness and justice," it said.

Polish archbishop calls for child sex abuse probe before Saint John Paul II centenary celebrations

By Danielle Wallace | Fox News

The 100th anniversary of the birth of Saint John Paul II has been somewhat marred in his native Poland after the country's most senior member of the Catholic Church asked the Vatican to investigate a Polish bishop accused of protecting priests known to have sexually abused children.

Archbishop Wojciech Polak, the most senior member of Poland’s Catholic Church, asked the Vatican on Saturday to “launch proceedings” into the findings of a new documentary. In March 2019, Pope Francis established a new reporting framework to prevent and counter abuses against minors and vulnerable persons.

The film “Hide and Seek," by brothers Tomasz and Marek Sekielski, was released earlier Saturday and explores how bishop Edward Janiak, based in the city of Kalisz, allegedly failed to take action against priests reported to have sexually abused children, according to Reuters.

Archbishop Wojciech Polak speaks with media representatives after extraordinary sitting of Polish bishops, to discuss steps the Catholic Church in Poland should take to tackle the problem of pedophilia, at the Polish Episcopate headquarters in Warsaw, Poland May 22, 2019. (Agencja Gazeta/Slawomir Kaminski/via Reuters) 

The documentary, as of Sunday, has more than 1.9 million views on YouTube, the BBC reported.

In a video broadcast by the Catholic news agency KAI, Polak said the film “shows that protection standards for children and adolescents in the church were not respected,” The Guardian reported.

“I ask priests, nuns, parents and educators to not be led by the false logic of shielding the Church, effectively hiding sexual abusers,” Polak said in another statement published Saturday, according to Reuters. “There is no place among the clergy to sexually abuse minors. We do not allow for the hiding of these crimes.”

This comes as churches across Poland have scheduled Sunday Masses, as well as online events and concerts due to the coronavirus pandemic, to celebrate Saint John Paul II. The centenary of his birth is Monday.

Saint John Paul II was born Karol Wojtyła in Wadowice, southern Poland, on May 18, 1920.

BISHOP CHOSEN TO INVESTIGATE CHURCH SEX ABUSE IS HIMSELF ACCUSED 

The first non-Italian pope in more than 450 years, he took the helm of the Catholic Church in 1978 until his death in 2005 and remains widely revered in his native Poland, where he’s credited to helping foster the belief in the 1980s that an end to the communist regime was possible, the BBC reported.

He was canonized, or officially became a saint, in 2014. The ruling nationalist Law and Justice party in Poland still has close ties to the church and promotes Catholic values.

“Tomorrow will be the centenary of the birth of Saint John Paul II, in Wadowice, Poland,” Pope Francis said Sunday in a livestream address to the Apostolic Library after praying the Regina Caeli.

“From Heaven, may he continue to intercede for the People of God and peace in the world,” the pope said, inviting Christians to remember Saint John Paul II "with great affection and gratitude."

(File photo from 1982) Close-up of Pope John Paul II sitting on a chair, wearing red robes with a portrait of the St. Theresa of Avila in the background during his visit to Avila, Spain.

Pope Francis announced that Masses could resume in person in Italy for the first time since the pandemic began starting Monday, Vatican News reported. He said he will host a Monday morning Mass broadcast by World Vision from the same altar where Saint John Paul II’s remains lie in rest in Saint Peter’s Basilica.

“I share in the joy of the communities that can finally reunite as liturgical assemblies, a sign of hope for all society,” the pope said.

Investigating a saint? Yikes! 

The Sekielski brothers released a film last May titled “Tell No One,” which alleges that known pedophiles were deliberately shuffled between parishes. That documentary has more than 23 million views on YouTube.

Though the first two films do not explore Saint John Paul II’s involvement in alleged cover-up schemes, the filmmakers said they plan to release a third focused on the “role of John Paul II in the dissimulation of crimes committed by priests,” The Guardian reported.

It seems like the AB is trying to tamp down the celebrations on JP2s centennial. Wonder if he knows what's coming in the next film by the brothers.

2 Fugitives, Pervert Couple, Teacher Lead A Bunch of Creeps on Today's USA Pervs n Pedos List

Idaho Falls man sent to prison for years of child sex abuse

Eric Grossarth, EastIdahoNews 

IDAHO FALLS — An Idaho Falls man was sent to prison this month for a sex crime involving two 16-year-old girls.

Abundio Perez-Resendiz, 33, was sentenced four to 20 years in prison by District Judge Joel Tingey on May 11. Perez-Resendiz pleaded guilty to felony sexual battery by lewd acts on a child in exchange for a felony enticing a child through the internet charge in another case being dropped.

The first victim told Idaho Falls Police last year that Perez-Resendiz sexually molested her since she was 10. The victim said a few months before she spoke to officers, the molesting turned into him forcing her to have sex frequently. Police had the victim confront her abuser over the phone, and Perez-Resendiz “admitted to the rape,” according to court documents.

Police arrested Perez-Resendiz, and days later, a second victim came forward. The girl told police Perez-Resendiz would send her messages about sex and asking her to engage in sexual activities and sleep together, according to court documents. Detectives wrote in their reports that Perez-Resendiz never had sex with the second victim.

Tingey also ordered Perez-Resendiz to pay $3,845.50 in fees and fines.

Kaysville, Ut, man charged with 20+ counts of sexual abuse of child over 8-year period

By: Spencer Burt, Fox13

HEBER CITY, Utah — A Kaysville man was arrested Thursday night in Heber City on a warrant after being charged with 26 counts of sexual abuse and assault over the span of several years.

Jesse Paul Murff, 39, was charged earlier this week with 21 felonies and three misdemeanors in relation to the sexual abuse of a child. Two additional felony charges were filed for incidents that occurred after the victim turned 18, according to court documents.

Police say Murff repeatedly sexually abused a girl starting when she was 10 years old. Court documents state that over the years, he forcibly touched and assaulted her, and forced her to perform sexual acts on him. He also reportedly showed her pornography, telling her they were "teaching moments." He is also accused of threatening the girl that he would kill her and her family if she told anyone.

He is being charged by the Davis County Attorney's office, although the alleged abuse occurred in multiple counties.

On Thursday, the Davis County Sheriff's Office contacted Heber City Police for help apprehending Murff, who they believed was in the Heber area. He was "actively evading law enforcement and possibly attempting to leave the state," they said. He was taken into custody after a "high risk traffic stop" involving Heber City Police, undercover Davis County Deputies and Utah Highway Patrol.

Murff is charged with:

6 counts of forcible sodomy, 1st-degree felony

5 counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child, 1st-degree felony

4 counts of object rape, 1st-degree felony

3 counts of rape, 1st-degree felony

4 counts of forcible sexual abuse, 2nd-degree felony

1 count of dealing harmful materials to a minor, 3rd-degree felony

2 counts of lewdness involving a child, class A misdemeanor

1 count of lewdness, class B misdemeanor

The bail amount recommended by prosecutors is $440,946.

Registered Md child sex offender arrested for

sex abuse charges

PIKESVILLE, Md. — Maryland State Police have arrested a registered child sex offender from Baltimore County, who was wanted on additional sexual abuse of a minor charges.

The suspect, 51-year-old Anthony Lyvonne Howes, of Halethorpe, was arrested without incident on Friday, at around 11 a.m. in the 1100 block of South Hanover Street in Baltimore City.

Officials say Howes had been missing since, at least, November 4, 2019. Troopers from the Maryland State Police Apprehension Team became aware of his disappearance when they tried to arrest him at his home on charges that he sexually assaulted a minor in Centreville.

In addition to the arrest warrant on the most recent charges, Howes also had an arrest warrant issued by the Baltimore County Police Department for providing false information when he registered as a sex offender in Maryland.

Howes was transported to the Maryland State Police Centreville Barrack for processing.

Two charged with child sexual abuse in Alabama

Benjamin Bullard

The Cullman Times

    

Two people have been arrested in connection with a local case allegedly involving the sexual abuse of a child.

Amy Nicole Lovell, 29, of Remlap and Justin Anthony Jeffries, 26, of Arab each face charges of aggravated sexual abuse, sexual torture, and sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12. Jeffries faces an additional charge of sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12.

Another youngish pair of perverts where the woman is older than the man. This happens perhaps more often than not.

The Cullman County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement Friday that it would not release details of the case, due to its graphic nature involving a juvenile.

The sheriff’s office said the arrests came following a brief investigation in collaboration with the Cullman County Department of Human Resources, the Cullman Advocacy Center, and the Cullman County District Attorney’s Office. Investigators believe the suspects committed multiple sex crimes against the alleged victim.

According to the sheriff’s office, Jeffries was apprehended by police in Canby, Oregon, where investigators believe he fled to elude arrest. “CCSO investigators notified the Canby Police Department and Jeffries was taken into custody and is currently being transported to the Cullman County Detention Center where his bond has been revoked,” the sheriff’s office said.

Lovell has posted bond after being taken into custody at the Cullman County Detention Center.

Have you seen him? Houston man charged with

3 counts of child sexual assault

Author: KHOU 11 Staff

Houston Crime Stoppers says Kevin Leonardo Mendez, 24, is wanted in connection into multiple abuse cases in the area.

HOUSTON — Houston police need the public's help finding a man charged with three counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child.

The department caught word of the assaults on April 4.

Investigators said Kevin Leonardo Mendez, 24, is linked to a child assault case that happened in the 7500 block of Peekskill Lane and another in the 8100 block of Coastway Lane. 

During an investigation, the child victims accused Mendez of sexual abuse.

Mendez is 5 feet 5 inches tall and weighs between 160 - 170 pounds. He has brown eyes and black hair.

Crime Stoppers may pay up to $5,000 for information leading to the identification, charging and/or arrest of the suspect in this case. Information may be reported by calling 713-222-TIPS (8477), submitted online at www.crime-stoppers.org or through the Crime Stoppers mobile app. Only tips and calls DIRECTLY TO Crime Stoppers are anonymous and eligible for a cash reward.

Have you seen him? Another Houston man accused of sexually assaulting a child last summer

Author: KHOU 11 Staff

HOUSTON — Houston police are searching for a man charged with aggravated child sexual assault of a child.

I am not convinced these pics represent one person, but this was what was posted by KHOU11

The alleged incident happened July 27, 2019.

Gabriel Cesar Chavez, 30, is accused of assaulting a child in the 3900 block of South Shaver Street. During the investigation, police said the victim made an outcry of sexual abuse. 

Chavez stands at 5-foot-9, weighs about 150 pounds and has brown eyes and black hair.

Crime Stoppers may pay up to $5,000 for information leading to the identification, charging and/or arrest of the suspect in this case. Information may be reported by calling 713-222-TIPS (8477), submitted online at www.crime-stoppers.org or through the Crime Stoppers mobile app. Only tips and calls DIRECTLY TO Crime Stoppers are anonymous and eligible for a cash reward.

Idaho Falls high school teacher arrested after

alleged sexual assault of student

Eric Grossarth, EastIdahoNews 

IDAHO FALLS — A local high school teacher was arrested Tuesday after a female student told police she had been sexually abused and harassed by him.

Patrick Todd Smith, 51, teaches at the Technical Careers High School in Bonneville Joint School District 93. He was a Bonneville County Sheriff’s deputy from 2007 to 2011, according to sheriff’s spokesman Sgt. Bryan Lovell.

Smith has been charged with felony sexual battery on a minor for behavior with the 17-year-old student that allegedly started with flirty and sexual comments and escalated to unwanted kissing and groping in spring 2019.

The victim gave a forensic interview at the Upper Valley Child Advocacy Center as part of an Idaho State Police investigation into the case. During the interview, the victim described a pattern of sexual harassment. She said Smith, an auto shop teacher, was overly comfortable and flirty with his students, and he would reportedly take everything the students said as sexual, according to court documents.

The victim said the behavior was ignored because it was “normal” for Smith.

The victim said the behavior eventually went beyond sexual comments. She said Smith started with innocent hugging, but one day he reportedly grabbed her, pulled her into his lap and said it wasn’t fair she aroused him and “he had to deal with it all day.”

“Each time Smith came back into the shop, he would take it a step further. … Smith kept saying that his life would be easier if she wasn’t so attractive or if she was 18,” the probable cause reads.

The abuse allegedly escalated to the point where Smith kissed the student and groped her underneath her clothes.

The girl left school for the rest of the day after the encounter and Smith reportedly texted her to ask if she was OK. In text messages viewed by police, the victim responded she was not OK with the touching and that it needed to stop. Smith replied that it was fine, and he would stop.

The next day at school, Smith hugged her and apologized.

But the flirty behavior continued, and Smith would hug the victim even more after she turned 18, according to court documents.

The documents do not give Smith’s side of the story. Smith’s attorney, Shane Reichert, was unavailable for comment.

The school district has placed Smith on paid administrative leave. The District 93 school board has also opened its own investigation into Smith. Idaho law prohibits the district disclosing the results of that investigation as it is a personnel matter.

“We are deeply concerned and saddened to learn that a Bonneville School District teacher has been arrested and charged with a crime alleging sexual abuse of a minor,” Bonneville Joint School District 93 spokesman Phil Campbell said in a statement.”A fundamental goal of the district is to ensure the physical and emotional safety of every student entrusted to our care.”

If convicted of felony sexual battery of a minor, Smith could spend up to life in prison.

Smith posted a $10,000 bond after his arrest and was released from jail on Wednesday. A no-contact order has been issued between Smith and the victim.

He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing June 2 at the Bonneville County Courthouse.

Somerset, Ky, man sentenced to three years for

child sexual abuse

By JANIE SLAVEN

Commonwealth Journal

    

A local man accused of assaulting a child back in December 2018 has been sentenced to three years in jail.

J.T. Weaver, 44, of Somerset, pleaded guilty in February to first-degree Sexual Abuse, amended down from first-degree Rape (victim under 12).

The Pulaski County Grand Jury returned the indictment last May following the Pulaski County Sheriff's Office investigation into an incident reported to have occurred on Christmas Eve 2018.

In exchange for Weaver's guilty plea, Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney David Bridgeman recommended a three-year sentence. Pulaski Circuit Judge Jerry Cox imposed sentence on April 17.

Upon release, Weaver will be required to register as a sex offender. Though his full sentence would be completed on May 18, 2022, online records from the Kentucky Department of Corrections (DOC) indicate that he becomes eligible for parole this July 1.

Wow! From 1st deg rape to 3 years ( or is it one year?) in prison!!! The victim will barely be a teenager, if, in fact, she is a teenager when he is released. Damn good deal for the rapist; not so much for the victim. When will victims get the same rights in court as their rapists?

Weaver remains lodged at the Pulaski County Detention Center.