At least 3 in my congregation. There was a brother who was known for getting too friendly with little girls, another who assaulted a child. A few years before it happened his parents were trying to set me up with him . He was pioneering at the time the assault happened, allowed to keep pioneering, kept his microphone and watchtower reading privleges as well. The child's father was abusing her too.
Did You Personally Know of Sex Offenders In The Congregation?
by minimus 59 Replies latest jw friends
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minimus
When you see a grown man that always seems to "play" with children after the meetings----you gotta know something's "wrong".
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undercover
1. I knew of one brother who seemed a little, um...how does one put this...too familiar with the younger brothers in the hall. He was always befriending them and getting them to do things with him.
Kind of strange for a guy of 50-something to want to always hang out with teenage boys. But everyone in the congregation thought he was just trying to be a fatherly type to the boys, especially those without fathers or whose fathers were not JWs.
But as time went on, stories started to surface about some things he said and did. Looking back, all the clues and signs were there, it was just that no one paid any attention. Cognitive dissonance, I guess. You see it, you know it, but you choose to ignore it because Jah's people don't do those things.
Eventually this guy messed with a young man (late teens) with personality disorders. The rumors were rampant through the area about what had happened but it wasn't until the parents of the teen went to the police and had restraining orders taken out on the guy that they elders finally took any real action that resulted in the DFing of the molester.
2. I knew another brother that faced the opposite problem. The elders were out to get him for some reason and were insistent that he was gay. They started a witch hunt in trying to find some dirt on him. They never did and they finally had to let the matter drop, but it caused many hard feelings in the congregation. But, what's interesting to me is that the brother being accused also has a penchant for hanging out with younger boys/teens. This guy would now be about 50, never married (not that that is proof of anything), and likes to hang out with the teen boy crowd in the congregation. I have to wonder about this guy. There's no proof, but I do wonder. Let's put it this way...if it were to come out tomorrow that he was caught in a compromising situation, I wouldn't be that surprised.
3. I knew a brother who was DFd based on the say-so of two other brothers who had a problem with this guy. They accused him of inappropriate behavior and since the two of them counted as two witnesses, they DFd the first brother. I was not there, I don't know the full truth, but I do know that the first brother enough to know that I highly doubt the claims of the other two. And I know them well enough to know that they can't be trusted and it would not be above them to frame the other brother whom they did not like. Does this count as knowing someone who was a molester? Some swear that the brother did these things, others say they "know" he didn't. I don't think he did, but I can't prove it either way, so I guess he has to be included in a list of "keep an eye on this guy".
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minimus
I would think it's terrible to be tagged a "child molester" if it's not true!
Like I said earlier, the Society should clearly educate the congregation in discerning who poses a danger to them (like they do with "apostates").
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justsomedude
Off the top of my head I can think of 4. Fortuntately 3 of those served time in prison, one multiple times.
The crazy thing is, I wasn't really in the "know" as far as dubs went. I wasn't really part of the jw in-crowd that would be aware of all the little scandals and gossip and yet I'm aware of 4 pedophiles. One continues to serve as an elder as far as I'm aware and nothing was ever announced to anyone.
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J-ex-W
Some swear that the brother did these things, others say they "know" he didn't.
don't think he did, but I can't prove it either way, so I guess he has to be included in a list of "keep an eye on this guy".
This is better than sticking with the idea that you "know" he didn't, since--as you said--you weren't there.
I don't know any of these people, but I do know my ex-husband, and there are pople who would swear that such a nice man could 'never' be of capable doing the things he has regularly done to me. (even to his sisters) It's quite true...people don't see/ hear everything, and especially not every side of such an individual....
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restrangled
In the hall I was in something happened many years after I left. My mother was still in and related the story. There was an aging elder (late 60's) that had been married many years. His wife was dieing of cancer. They had taken under their wing a new, a pretty convert about 17 years old. She was their bible study. She made great progress, baptized and started pioneering immediately. The elder spent many hours "out in service" with this girl.
This girl became a close friend of my mom and started confiding to my mom that this elder was taking her out to the forest preserves just to talk during service hours and felt very uncomfortable. Talking became something else....(touchy, feeley).....maybe more but my mom was never sure. The girl was very frightened, upset and confused, my mom encouraged her to go to the elders.
It didn't go over very well. She was strongly counseled with private reproof and was extremely upset because the only thing that happened to him was that his privileges were removed. It was later revealed this was not the first time he had problems with younger females. My mom was called in as a witness and the elder and his wife never talked to my mom again. On the wife's dieing bed, when my mom went to see her, she turned her head away.
The girl eventually dropped out in disgust.
r.
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minimus
The local newspaper encouraged readers to look at the list of Level 3 Offenders within the area, put on line by the police department. When viewing ALL the photos of the mug shots, EVERY single person looked sick, weird, creepily strange. I mean EVERY ONE OF THEM!!!
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avishai
But you see, if you threatened to "kick his ass", you'd be guilty and DF'd for "fits of rage" as was expressed earlier in the thread.
In that case, why threaten? Just do it!
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eclipse
I know of one, who molested 2 of his step-daughters, but left his 2 natural daughters alone. the 2 that he molested since they were 2 years old till they were in their teens, are now DF'd, one for blowing the whistle on her step-dad and the other one for fornication. They went several times to the elders, but NO ONE believed the girls, they all believed the elder molester..
That man was an elder, pioneer, and made his girls pioneer while he was raping them. When they went to the elders, they were told to NOT GO to the police, and their mother sided with her husband, and not her own flesh & blood daughters.
They finally did go to police, since they were teenagers, and It was brought to court, and then he was removed as an elder, but not before.
He also touched one of his nieces.
He is still in good standing as a JW, and so is his JW wife.
Her daughters do not speak to her. Her oldest daughter told her mother that she was just as guilty as her husband. She knew it was happening and did nothing to protect her girls, she still denies that her husband did anything...