UPDATED June 5, 2023: Since this article was published, more charges have been filed against former youth pastor Daniel Kellan Mayfield. An investigation revealed that Mayfield allegedly filmed at least six girls, as young as 14, in the bathroom of First Baptist Church Gowensville. According to authorities, Mayfield set up cameras and recorded video at least three times, dating back to July 2022.
After Mayfield was charged with five counts of first-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and one count of voyeurism, he was denied bond. More charges may still be filed, according to authorities. They stated that Mayfield likely acted alone and that church leaders probably were unaware of the incidents.
ChurchLeaders original article written on June 1, 2023, below.
A congregation in Greenville County, South Carolina, fired its youth pastor on May 27 following his arrest for alleged voyeurism. Officials at First Baptist Church Gowensville confirmed that the church immediately terminated the employment of Daniel Kellan Mayfield after his arrest last weekend. Mayfield, 35, had served as the Southern Baptist congregation’s student/youth pastor for seven years.
Based on his LinkedIn profile, Mayfield previously worked as a missions director at Student Life in Birmingham, Alabama, and as a ministry associate at Child Evangelism Fellowship in Roebuck, South Carolina.
Although Mayfield also lists Compassion International as a previous employer, a spokesperson said the organization never directly employed Mayfield. Instead, “he was employed by a company that Compassion contracted for marketing events, from 2013-2014. He has also served as a volunteer at some Compassion marketing events until 2016. Though he applied for a position with Compassion, he was never hired.”
The spokesperson added, “As a ministry with child protection at the very core of our mission, we are obviously distraught over these accusations against a former volunteer and pray for justice and peace.”
Victim Noticed Light Outside Bathroom Window
Early Saturday morning, the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call about a civil disturbance. A woman told authorities that while she was showering at her mother’s house, she noticed a light shining outside the bathroom window. When the woman stepped outside to investigate, she said she saw the suspect in the backyard.
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The report also noted that the victim’s sister drove to the house and noticed someone in the backyard, standing near a bathroom window. As her vehicle headlights illuminated that area, she said, she could see someone fleeing the scene on foot.
When both women approached and confronted Mayfield, he reportedly indicated that he had been filming the woman in the shower. The victim and her sister apparently captured videotape of Mayfield in the act of recording through the window.
Report: Suspect Admitted to Videotaping
According to the sheriff’s report, Mayfield at first denied to deputies that he had been standing by the window or filming anyone in the shower. But when Mayfield handed over his cell phone to the victim, who has not been named, she scrolled through his videos and saw footage of herself showering.
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