Back in September Common Ground Church, one of the Southern Suburb’s most well known and attended churches, was thrust into the spotlight after the conduct of a youth pastor hit the headlines.

He has yet to be named in the press (although people in the comments sections of THIS story seem to be on to something), and the community is still shaken after learning about the scope of his depravities.

To sum those up – police said the 27-year-old suspect’s modus operandi allegedly involved hacking into his teenage congregants’ social media accounts and, using the identity of a teenage girl, coaxing an estimated 50 boys between the ages of 14 and 17 to share naked photos of themselves.

You can read more about that HERE.

Times LIVE published an update yesterday evening so let’s check in there:

The man‚ who worked at Commonground [sic] Church‚ appeared in Wynberg Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday but the case was postponed…

Donovan Miller‚ a spokesman for the church which is based in Rondebosch‚ said the boys and their families were affected to varying degrees by the incident.

A total of 50 teens fell victim to the man. He was arrested following an investigation by the Hawks and the US Department of Homeland Security.

“Although the initial shock and impact has passed there is a very real sense and stark reality that there is a long road of recovery and restoration ahead for many. For some‚ it will get worse before‚ we trust‚ it will get better‚” said Miller.

He said the church had made professional social workers and psychologists available to affected boys and their families. A helpline had also been set up.

“The reality is this kind of criminal activity and abuse of power breeds mistrust and suspicion. We know it will be a long‚ slow road ahead but we are fully committed to the process of rebuilding trust‚” said Miller.

You know what breeds mistrust? The fact that two years before being caught the man was investigated for sending a WhatsApp message to a teenager who had injured his genital area‚ requesting a photo.

To be fair the church did ask two therapists to assess the pastor, as well as requesting  a report from an external forensic clinical psychologist‚ and all three gave the pastor a “clean bill of health”.

Still, not a good look – anyone seen the movie Spotlight recently?

Some of the families of the boys were understandably fuming when the pastor was caught, whilst others expressed relief that he was caught and will have to answer for his crimes.

Let’s just hope the legal system comes to the party on this one.

[source:timeslive]