Florida pastor accused of having sex with 14-year-old boy while hiding HIV diagnosis
NBC News · LC · trust 40/100
Timothy Chaneyfield, 42, of St. James United American Free Will Baptist Church in Winter Haven, was arrested after he got off a plane at Orlando International Airport on July 29, the Polk County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement .
The sheriff’s office alleged that Chaneyfield and a 14-year-old boy met on a dating app before Chaneyfield took their chats to Instagram, which led to three meetings for sex.
Tips from Instagram and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children led detectives to Chaneyfield, Sheriff Grady Judd told reporters Tuesday.
A 26-year-old man who also had sex with Chaneyfield was located by investigators and tested positive for HIV, Judd said.
“The 26-year-old didn’t know [Chaneyfield was HIV-positive] until we brought it to his attention, and the 14-year-old had no clue that he was having unprotected sex with an adult that was HIV-positive,” Judd said. “This guy’s nasty. He’s a menace to society, and he’s proven that.”
Polk County deputies wanted to arrest Chaneyfield last week, but he was in Baltimore, leading a funeral service.
“We actually tried to catch him while he was in Baltimore, because we didn’t even want him wandering the streets of Baltimore. What is he up to there?” Judd said.
But he said his department got “zero assistance” from authorities in Baltimore — an agency that a spokesperson for Judd identified Wednesday as the Maryland Transportation Authority Police.
A representative for the Maryland police could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday.
Chaneyfield has been booked on suspicion of three counts of lewd battery of a minor, three counts of interfering with custody of a minor, unlawful use of a two-way communication device, three counts of traveling to meet a minor, four counts of having sex as an HIV-infected person without informing the partner, possession of marijuana and five counts of possession of drug paraphernalia.
“This is a dope-smoking preacher right here in front of you,” Judd said. “He’s a dope-smoking pedophile preacher right before you. And now he’s locked up in the county jail, where he should be. He was well-respected in the community. People trusted him; they believed in him. And now our plea is: If you’ve engaged this guy in sex, let us tell you [about his HIV status], because he didn’t.”
Chaneyfield also was the chaplain for Compassionate Care Hospice in Lakeland and had previously been employed by Crystal Lake Middle School as a substitute teacher.
“I would be shocked if there weren’t other children victims out there,” Judd said. “I would be shocked if there weren’t other victims out there. He was very active. He was very engaged.”
Calls to a publicly listed phone number for St. James United American Free Will Baptist Church on Wednesday were met with a message that the line had been disconnected.
Representatives for Compassionate Care Hospice and Broward County Public Schools could not immediately be reached for comment on Wednesday.
The United American Freewill Baptist Conference said St. James United American Free Will Baptist Church in Winter Haven “is not affiliated with, governed by, or under the ecclesiastical authority or jurisdiction of the United American Freewill Baptist Conference.”
“Accordingly, we are unable to offer guidance, insight, legal interpretation, or further comment concerning the matter,” the national body said.
It wasn’t clear Wednesday whether Chaneyfield has a criminal defense lawyer to speak on his behalf.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673 . The hotline, run by the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN), can put you in contact with your local rape crisis center. You can also access RAINN’s online chat service at https://www.rainn.org/get-help .
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