Murder by Church Leaders or Their Staff – 1980 – 1989
These are just a few of the killing incidents we have identified. Most entries on these pages only contain arrests, charges, or indictments, which may eventually be reduced, dropped, or expunged, and as such, these actors may in fact be innocent in a court of law. These are just a few of the murders, attempted murders, and justifiable homicides we have identified. There are many more to be uploaded, so please check back.
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1988
- Charles Sennett (pastor) was arrested for allegedly paying another man to engage in stabbing and beating his wife, and staging the crime scene to appear like a “home invasion.” Church of Christ, Sheffield, AL. Former sheriff recalls woman’s ‘horrific’ murder-for-hire by pastor as Alabama prepares execution.
1987
- Emmanuel Church of Christ Oneness Pentecostal, Nashville, TN. John David Terry (minister) was convicted of shooting a church handyman, beheaded him, and left the redressed body in a burning church. Terry also had stolen $30,000 from the church’s funds. The minister later died by suicide in prison. Minister sentenced to death.
1986
- Hillcrest Baptist Church, Port Angeles, WA. Grady Young (pastor) arrested for shooting his wife in the church parsonage and then blaming it on a burglary. Congregation mourns wife pastor accused of slaying.
- Jeremiah Fogle (former deacon) was arrested on charges of killing his wife Diane Fogle with a rifle. Greater Faith Christian Center Church, Lakeland, FL. Florida man accused of shooting wife, pastors had killed before.
1985
- Gethsemane Baptist Church, Washington, DC. Louis B. Sawyer (deacon) arrested on charges of murder. He is alleged to have used a shotgun to kill the financial secretary who suspected him of embezzlement. Church deacon held in D.C. slaying.
1984
- Cases to be added. Please check back.
1983
- Faith Lutheran Church, Emporia, KS. Tom Bird (pastor) convicted of murdering his wife in Kansas. Kansas woman in infamous murder case off parole.
- Melvin Jackson Jr. (deacon) was charged with murdering a woman by stabbing her with a kitchen steak knife. The victim was a French national visiting her sister in DC. The suspect was linked to the crime by DNA recently tested. Sonship Church Center, Washington, DC. D.C. Deacon Charged in 1983 Slaying DNA Evidence Links Man to Rape, Killing in NW Burglary.
1982
- First 6th Street Baptist Church, Port Arthur, TX. Donald Ray Abram (pastor, years later) convicted of capital murder for killing young woman in a convenience store robbery. Church selection committees appointed him in several parishes without discovering his crimes. Texas: Port Arthur pastor under fire; Murder, Kidnapping & Armed Robbery.
- Saddleback Church (prison ministry), Yoba, CA. Danny Duchene (pre-pastor) pled guilty to assisting a contract killer knife two men to death. Pastor at Saddleback Church turned his life around while serving 25-to-life terms for double murder.
1981
- Macedonia United Brethren Church, Greencastle, PA. Donald Lewis Clark (pastor) suicided in 1983 when police were closing in with “evidence of his crimes” of having killed his first wife. ‘Shock and horror’ over minister who killed two wives.
- New Life Baptist Fellowship, Quitman, TX. Joseph Lewis Miller, aka Roy Eugene Eubanks (deacon) arrested on charges of murder with a firearm, killing Thomas Waller following an argument in a bar. Fugitive charged with 1981 murder found serving as Texas church deacon.
1980
- Mercy Hospital Chapel, Toledo, OH. Gerald Robinson (priest & chaplain) convicted of killing a nun by strangulation and stabbing, and then later “presided over her funeral mass.” A ritual expert described the stab wounds as in pattern of inverted cross. 1) Murder of Margaret Ann Pahl on Holy Saturday. 2) Father Gerald Robinson: Devil or Priest.
- By Divine Purpose Christian Center; & West Brighton ministry, Staten Island, NY. James D. Burrus (pastor) was arrested in 2020 for the cold case murder of a strangled teenaged female. He was linked to the murder through his DNA found under the girl’s fingernails. Inside the double life of a NYC preacher charged in cold case murder.
- Wade Temple of Faith, Gary, IN. Eugene Wade (pastor) was convicted of murdering his former mother-in-law by beating, stabbing and shooting her. His weapon was a hammer, a pocket-knife, and a handgun. Pastor Killed Mom-in-law. Burlington Times News, May 7, 1982, p. 5A.
- Church of God of the First Born, Leoti, KS. Fidel Rodriguez (former pastor) was arrested and charged with shooting and killing another former pastor, Gustavo Ornelas. He was convicted of involuntary manslaughter. Former Leoti Pastor Convicted in Death. Hutchinson News, May 23 1981, p. 20.
Circa 1980s
- Unidentified church, Burbank, CA. Casey Diaz (pastor) is a former “savage gang-leader” who committed murder in Los Angeles. 1) ‘I Committed Murder’: Violent Gang Member-Turned-Pastor Reveals the Moment That Changed Everything. 2) From A Savage Gang Leader To A Pastor – The Inspiring Testimony Of Casey Diaz.