3 weeks ago
2
Another accusation of sex crimes against minors, and — shock of shocks — it’s not a drag queen. It’s a youth pastor.
Alabama youth pastor Stephen Dewayne Johnson was arrested in Florida last week after a long history of forcing women into sex work has been uncovered, according to arrest docs obtained by People. We say women… but this girl was barely a teenager when Johnson met her.
According to the outlet, an undercover cop detained Johnson on October 23 after knocking on his apartment door and recognizing a teen girl from an online escort ad. And what she told the officer is just so heartbreaking.
Related: Diddy Accused Of Horrific Assault Of 10-Year-Old Rapper
According to the legal docs, the teen claimed she had been selling “nude content” on Snapchat since she was just 12 years old and living in Maryland. She claimed she eventually met a woman named “Antania” online, who told her she would help with the sale of her explicit content. The child agreed, and they reportedly worked together for a number of years until September 2023 when the unnamed teen became homeless after fleeing abuse. She claimed Antania purchased her a plane ticket to fly to Birmingham, and that’s when she found out it wasn’t a woman named Antania she was speaking to. She had been tricked by a man — Stephen Dewayne Johnson. He was the one selling her nude content for a cut — since she was just 14 years old.
Now she was 17. At this point, she says, the pastor began forcing her into prostitution, even driving her between Alabama and Maryland to “engage in commercial sex acts.” She made $105,000 over the course of a few months from sexual acts, according to what cops say Johnson ultimately told them. He also confirmed he had sex with her himself while she was a minor — twice — per the affidavit.
WTF.
The teen was later accepted into Nova Southeastern University in Florida. But Johnson followed her to continue the exploitation. According to legal docs, he took 40 percent of the income from her sex work, which was also traced to North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington, DC. That is until last week when an undercover detective came to Johnson’s apartment and recognized the teen from escort ads online.
And get this: Stephen told cops he served as a volunteer youth pastor and children’s “counselor” at Macedonia 17th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham for 12 years, where he worked with children between the ages of 5 and 18. EW. It makes us shudder to think of this man working with other young women. What else did he do??
Disturbingly, Johnson has only been charged thus far with one count of third-degree felony living off the earnings of prostitution. Pimping? That’s it? He was allegedly selling nude content of a 14-year-old and had sex with a minor, and that’s the only charge??
Presumably more charges must be coming. Johnson is still in custody on a bond of $500,000. And the judge barred him from contact with any minors and from using or possessing devices with internet access. So that sounds like they know how serious this is at least…
[Images via Broward County Clerk of the Courts.]
English (US) ·