A pastor has been arrested and charged with two counts of promoting child sex abuse material (CSAM). Andrew Lovisone, an associate pastor at First Baptist Church (FBC) in Peculiar, Missouri, was arrested on Tuesday (Sept. 17).
The charges against Lovisone stem from incidents alleged to have occurred on July 3.
During an interview with detectives, Lovisone, 29, admitted to downloading and uploading multiple CSAM images both from his home and from the church facility. He also told investigators that they would find further incriminating evidence on his phone, including CSAM images with children as young as 12 years old.
Authorities believe Lovisone used Reddit and Kik to download and share the material.
Law enforcement officials said that they received five separate tips from the National Centers for Missing and Exploited Children regarding emails belonging to Lovisone.
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The Cass County Sheriff told KCTV5 that FBC Peculiar has been cooperative in the investigation.
Nic Wilson, who serves as lead pastor of FBC Peculiar, released a joint statement with his board of deacons, which said, “We are aware that Andy Lovisone has been charged with two counts of promoting [CSAM]. We are deeply concerned by these charges that are not condoned by our church and are strongly contrary to our beliefs.”
“The church has been in communication with law enforcement and will continue to fully aid the investigation,” the statement continued. “Andy Lovisone has been suspended from his duties at the church at this time.”
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Jeff Weber, the co-sheriff for Cass County, said, “We appreciate the diligent work of the Cass County detectives assigned to the Western Missouri Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.”
. Andrew Lovisone, an associate pastor at First Baptist Church (FBC) in Peculiar, Missouri, was arrested on Tuesday (Sept. 17). ){kind=link}