California pastor, 40, is arrested after woman who attended his church claims he sexually abused her for six years from the age of 12, prompting more women to come forward
A pastor in LA's Hacienda Heights has been arrested on suspicion of child abuse after a woman claimed she was sexually assaulted by the church leader when she was a child.
The allegation came in to the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department (LASD) on January 9 and the victim said she and her family were members of what was known as Home of Christians Eastern Los Angeles Church at the time.
The anonymous accuser told police that Jonathan Tsai, now 40, regularly visited her home because his family became close to her relatives.
She alleges the abuse lasted six years from when she was 12 until she was 18 years old.
Tsai was a youth pastor at the time.
The LASD say it has identified two other women who have reported similar claims of sexual assault by the suspect when they too were minors.
Incidents stem back to the year 2000 according to prosecutors. Tsai would have been 20 years old at the time.
Tsai is currently Head Pastor at the church which is now named Abundant Life Ministries.
The website for the church displayed a message that it was undergoing maintenance on Thursday.
The place of worship has a largely Mandarin Chinese congregation.
He was arrested at his home on July 21 and was held at Walnut Station on a bail amount of $1.4million. However he was released three days later on July 24.
Jonathan Tsai, 40, head pastor at Abundant Life Ministries in Los Angeles County is seen center
The Abundant Life Ministries church in Los Angeles County, California, is seen above
The DA has charged Tsai with four counts of Lewd Acts on a Child Under 14 years Old, one count of Oral Copulation of a Person Under 16, and one count of Sexual Penetration of a Person Under 16.
His next court date is August 26, 2020.
Police believe there are more victims and have urged them to come forward.
West Covina Police Department is also investigating the suspect for sexual assault cases that occurred in the city of West Covina.
'It's an ongoing investigation,' Lt. Michael Burse, of the Special Victims Bureau told the LA Times.
'We feel there are probably more victims because these are crimes that occurred over a long period of time.'
California pastor, 40, is arrested after woman who attended his church claims he sexually abused her for six years from the age of 12, prompting more women to come forward
![California pastor, 40, is arrested after woman who attended his church claims he sexually abused her for six years from the age of 12, prompting more women to come forward]()
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August 07, 2020
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