Rod Loy, longtime senior pastor of First Assembly of God in North Little Rock, Arkansas, has stepped aside from a national leadership role while denominational officials investigate allegations of sexual abuse made against him.
Loy, who has led the megachurch since 2001, had served as an Assemblies of God executive presbyter since 2023. According to his online bio, Loy also serves as a vice president for Project Rescue, a denominational ministry that “rescues women and children from human trafficking.”
Editor’s note: This article refers to reports of child sex abuse, which some readers might find triggering and/or disturbing.
In a civil lawsuit filed on Jan. 26, Texas resident Suzanne Lander alleged that Loy sexually abused her from 1996, when she was 16, until 2016. Lander, now 45, claims that Loy’s behavior escalated from grooming to touching to rape—and that the pastor’s manipulative behavior continued even after she got married and started a family.
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In addition, Lander is suing First Assembly of God, also known as First North Little Rock, for negligence. Her husband, Patrick Lander, previously served as an assistant pastor at the church.
On Feb. 3, the church’s board of directors posted this statement:
Our lead pastor and church have been accused of inappropriate behavior many years ago by a former employee. The church leadership takes accusations of this nature extremely seriously. Upon initially hearing of such an allegation, the church board launched an external investigation which found nothing to substantiate the claims.
We just became aware that a lawsuit was filed by the accuser. Pastor Rod and our church board vehemently deny these claims. We are prepared to defend this accusation, and we ask for your prayers and patience during this difficult time for both the accused and the person making such an allegation.
Woman Sues Pastor Rod Loy for Sexual Assault and Battery
In her civil lawsuit, Suzanne Lander alleged that Pastor Rod Loy began abusing her in 1996, when she attended his Arkansas church as an “extremely vulnerable” teenager. Loy was physically affectionate, beginning with hugging, Lander claimed, and soon began touching her genitals.
According to the lawsuit, the abuse escalated over the next two years. Lander stated that Loy “forced her to perform oral sex, performed oral sex on her, and raped her in multiple locations,” including his church office, his home, and the church parking lot.
As part of what Lander characterized as grooming behavior, Loy allegedly included Lander in his family events, played basketball with her, gave her money, and called her on the phone daily. She claimed Loy told her that “God expected her to allow him to rape her and that followers of Jesus performed sexual acts for the men who were their spiritual leaders.”
Lander also said the pastor gained her compliance by citing Bible verses about obedience. Her lawsuit alleged that he “systematically conditioned [Lander] to believe their ‘sexual relationship’ had been normal, godly, and her own fault.”
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“Loy’s abuse and scriptural manipulation continued after Plaintiff turned eighteen, persisting for another eighteen years as he maintained control over her life, her marriage, and her children,” according to the lawsuit. Lander and her family moved away from Little Rock in 2016.
Rod Loy, longtime senior pastor of First Assembly of God in North Little Rock, Arkansas, has stepped aside from a national leadership role while denominational officials investigate allegations of sexual abuse made against him.Click to Post
