Ohio Pastor Anthony Haynes Sexually Abused Teenager, Encouraged Other Church Ministers Also

An Ohio pastor, who allegedly had sex with a teenager, groomed the young girl and encouraged two other ministers to get involved in sexual activity with her, federal prosecutors said Monday. Opening statements in the case against Anthony Haynes began Monday in the District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.

Haynes, who led Greater Life Christian Center, could face up to life in prison if convicted of child sex trafficking and other charges. Prosecutors told the jury that Haynes first had sex with the girl when she was 14. Evidence against the 40-year-old includes text messages, photos, voice mails and DNA evidence from his church. The girl said in her complaint that the pastor had sex with her several times in the church.

The two other Toledo-area pastors charged in the investigation have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing, NBC News reported.

According to court documents, Haynes promised the teenager's mother that he would take care of her. The girl moved in with the Haynes family but weeks later, he took the eighth-grade girl to an apartment where he engaged in oral sex with another woman in front of the teenager. Days later, Haynes took the teenager and the same woman to his church, where he ordered them to engage in sexual acts with each other, which he recorded on his cell phone.

“At the place of worship, when she’s 14 years old, he had sex with her,” Federal prosecutor Michael Freeman told the jury. Haynes later introduced the girl to another pastor, Kenneth Butler, and he also began having sex with her.

Freeman told the court Monday that the teenager later moved in with a new guardian and began attending Abundant Life Ministries, which was pastor Cordell Jenkins’ church. Jenkins allegedly expressed an interest in the girl, and Haynes encouraged her to have sex with the fellow pastor.

In addition to the charges against the men, Haynes' wife and stepdaughter were accused of abducting the girl at gunpoint in January and warning her not to testify at his trial. Alisa Haynes, wife of the former Toledo pastor, was charged with tampering with a witness, victim, or informant.