Visiting Pastor Charged with 3 Counts of Rape in Murfreesboro

Feb 21, 2018 at 01:07 pm by bryan


A child sex abuse case has lead to rape charges being filed against a Florida pastor who visited Murfreesboro. The two victims in the case are sisters. The case was originally opened in 2017.

The children were interviewed and according to a police report, "Both girls made compelling and credible disclosures that Pastor David Rowan had molested them at a local hotel in Murfreesboro in 2014."

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Murfreesboro Police Detective Michael Yates drove to Milton, Florida to meet with the accused pastor at his home and spoke with the man for about an hour.

A police report filed by Detective Tommy Roberts shows that Pastor Rowan was hired to speak in Rutherford County by a local church in 2014. During his visit, Rowan allegedly took the girls out for a hamburger, which is when he was said to be alone with the victims. At that time Rowan would have been 59 years old.

The report showed that the sisters were aged 14 and 15 when the rapes allegedly occurred. Apparently, the children and their mother knew the pastor before his visit to Murfreesboro. Detective Roberts reported, "The victims looked up to Pastor Rowan and counted on him for spiritual guidance."

Evidence was presented to the February 2018 Grand Jury which ended with an indictment.

On February 16, 2018, Pastor David Rowan was taken into custody by U.S. Marshal's and transported to the Santa Rosa County Jail in Florida. Rowan will soon be transported to Murfreesboro to face the charges.

CHARGES: Pastor Rowan was charged with three counts of RAPE, two counts of Unlawful Sexual Contact and one count of Sexual Battery by an Authority Figure.

Rowan is a pastor at Faith Baptist Church in Milton, Florida.

Source:

MPD INCIDENT 17-23216

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