Wolves Among the Sheep > Bay area pastor convicted of CSA of congregant; OK Prison chaplain guilty of CSAM, fantasy of own children; UK Christian camp leader drugged boys before abusing them

 

Richmond pastor convicted of sexually abusing child in congregation

A jury in Contra Costa County found a Richmond pastor guilty of sexually assaulting a child in his congregation, then using his position to bully her into silence.

Emilio Alberto Esperanza-Pacheco, 52, was convicted this week of five counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child under the age of 14 and 10 counts of forcible lewd acts upon a child, the Contra Costa District Attorney's Office said Thursday. The jury also found that one of the forcible lewd acts was committed during a residential burglary.

Esperanza-Pacheco sexually abused the child between June and October of 2023, prosecutors said. At the time, he was employed as a pastor at God's Lighthouse of Truth Church in Richmond. The child and her family were members of the church and friends of Esperanza-Pacheco.

"The prosecution presented the jury with evidence that Esperanza-Pacheco used his position with the church and his friendship with the family to silence the victim from telling anyone about the sexual assaults," the district attorney's office said.

She "eventually found the courage" to tell her parents about the abuse, prosecutors said. Esperanza-Pacheco was arrested by Richmond Police officers in Oct. 2023 and has remained in custody since.

Esperanza-Pacheco is set to be sentenced on April 9 in Martinez. He faces life in prison without the possibility of parole.

"The penalty the defendant is facing reflects the gravity of the crimes committed against a child," said Contra Costa District Attorney Diana Becton. "While no outcome can undo the trauma suffered by the victim, we hope the verdict provides some sense of justice and allows her and her family to move forward with a degree of closure."

After ‘fantasy’ about his children, former prison chaplain receives suspended sentence

Former Oklahoma State Penitentiary chaplain David Prince received a 10-year suspended sentence for the felony charge of possessing child pornography Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. (Provided)

(Editor’s note: The following article discusses child sexual abuse.)

MCALESTER — A former prison chaplain for the Oklahoma Department of Corrections received a suspended sentence Wednesday for possessing child sexual abuse material after his state-issued laptop was flagged for discussions of sexual “fantasies” involving his minor children.

David Prince, 42, was charged Nov. 7, 2023, in Pittsburg County District Court with two felony counts — one for procuring, producing, distributing or possessing juvenile pornography, and another for violating Oklahoma’s computer crimes statute.

But more than two years after the case was filed, District Attorney Chuck Sullivan offered Prince a plea deal that dismissed computer crimes charge and amended the first charge to the of felony of possessing child pornography.

Prince pleaded no contest, and Associate District Judge Tim Mills gave the former pastor a 10-year suspended sentence Wednesday, along with a $500 fine. Beyond asking Prince if he accepted the terms of the agreement, Mills spoke little and offered no explanation for his sentencing decision. Asked about the case, both Sullivan and Prince’s attorney, Paul Northcutt, declined to comment.

Prince will be supervised by ODOC for two years and was ordered to register as a sex offender.

Prince had been employed as a full-time chaplain for ODOC and was assigned to the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester. He was terminated from his position at OSP and removed from his position as an associate pastor at Northgate Baptist Church in McAlester at the time after he was charged in 2023.

Court records show Prince entered and completed a nine-month residential program through Pure Life Ministries prior to his Feb. 4 sentencing hearing. According to a letter sent to the court, the program exists to “serve Christian individuals and organizations dealing with sexual sin throughout the world by providing biblically-based counseling, teaching resources and a public speaking ministry with the goal of leading Christians to victory over sexual sin through a deeper life in God.”

Prison chaplain case lingered for two years

According to an affidavit filed in the case, the Oklahoma Counter Terrorism Intelligence Center alerted authorities to possible criminal activity involving Prince after a monitoring software flagged his state computer usage. The state deploys programs that track employee activity, which analysts review before forwarding concerns to agencies or law enforcement.

Investigators placed additional monitoring on Prince’s account after he allegedly viewed pornography repeatedly and engaged in explicit chats.

In an Oct. 31, 2023, conversation on Reddit, using the user ID u/daveatbigmac, Prince claimed he and his wife engaged in sexual acts with his children, the affidavit states. Analysts recorded Prince using two monitors — one for work and another to search for pornography and discuss sexual contact with his children.

“One such conversation where Prince was communicating back and forth with user ‘triallkkj’ he was at the same time on the other screen communicating with another DOC employee by the name of Wade Scott, asking Scott when doing clergy for an inmate which forms he needed to send to the warden,” the affidavit states.

Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation agents began investigating Prince for possible possession of child sexual abuse material and child molestation. They served search warrants at Prince’s residence and for his cell phone Nov. 6, 2023. Prince was home and provided the phone and passcode, the report states.

“The phone was then handed off to OSBI forensic analysts who did an on-scene preview of the phone,” the affidavit states. “During the on-scene preview of the phone, they discovered several images that would meet the legal definition of child sexual abuse material.”

One such recovered image depicted sexual abuse of a child as young as 10, according to the affidavit.

Prince agreed to speak with investigators and admitted he had viewed child sexual abuse material in the past “but never actively searched for it,” according to the report. He denied having sexual contact with his children and said the conversations “were only fantasy.”

East Midlands camp leader jailed for drugging and abusing boys

2 days ago

Tom OakleyandWill Jefford,East Midlands, BBC

A former vet, teacher and summer camp leader who laced sweets with tranquilliser and gave them to boys before sexually assaulting them has been jailed for more than 23 years.

Jon Ruben used the "cloak of Christianity" to carry out his attacks on vulnerable children, Leicester Crown Court heard on Friday.

The 76-year-old also drugged his wife Susan to ensure she would not wake up while the abuse took place. In court she labelled her husband of 24 years a "sadistic, monstrous paedophile", adding she had begun divorce proceedings.

A number of upset and angry parents of the victims also gave emotional testimony, with some swearing at Ruben as he was sentenced.

In a joint statement issued after the hearing, parents of the victims said Ruben was a "devious child sexual predator".

The statement read: "Jon Ruben portrayed himself as a good Christian man and someone who we could trust to be in charge of the care of our children.

"Our children themselves admired and respected Jon, but what we have found out is that Jon is a devious child sexual predator."

The statement added: "As families we are suffering shock, anxiety, distress, self-doubt and guilt, but we know it is you, Jon Ruben, who is to blame for this - no-one else."

Ruben was arrested after eight children and one adult fell ill at Stathern Lodge in Stathern, Leicestershire, in July last year.

The court heard Ruben - who had run a holiday camp for children for at least 27 years - had played a "sweet game", in which he would go into boys' rooms when they were getting ready for bed before asking them to eat drug-laced sweets "as quickly as they can".

Addressing Ruben, Judge Timothy Spencer KC said: "Ultimately, this case is about you achieving sexual gratification by carrying out your sexual fantasies focused upon young boys through careful, cynical, chilling preparation and by manipulation."

The parents of his victims nodded, and some wiped tears, as the judge handed down the sentence.

Continuing his sentencing remarks, Spencer said Ruben "lied and lied" when the police held an emergency interview with him to try and find out what drug he had given the children, so medics could treat them appropriately.

He added Ruben had made a "chilling" application to join an online paedophile group.

Spencer said Ruben, from Ruddington in Nottinghamshire, "misused" his veterinary knowledge and used the dark web to access drugs, and "espoused Christianity" and used his religion and his regard in the church to get into "close proximity to boys".

His role in the church led him to launch the camp at Stathern Lodge.

"With supreme irony, you were the safeguarding lead," the judge added.

Temporary Det Ch Insp Neil Holden, of Leicestershire Police, confirmed the investigation into Ruben remains "very much ongoing", with the force working alongside Nottinghamshire Police to contact schools and youth organisations in the Nottinghamshire area, which Ruben is known to have been involved with across the past 20 or more years.

He said: "I want to be open that we are under no illusion that we may never have the full answer regarding his crimes during previous years. Only Ruben knows that."

Det Ch Insp Holden said he was seen as "a pillar of the community", but now "that trust has been shattered".

"A lot of the parents blame themselves. They blame themselves for trusting Jon Ruben, they blame themselves for allowing their children to go away and be supervised by Jon Ruben.

"There's only one person to blame for this, and that is Jon Ruben."

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He added the police's public portal was open