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All five suspects and their alleged victims are members of Jehovah's Witnesses congregations, AG Michelle Henry said in a release dated Friday, July 7.
The charges come just months after nine other Jehovah's Witnesses congregants were accused of similar charges in the Keystone State — four of them last October and five more in February, Daily Voice reported.
The suspects range in age from 45 to 61, and all but one are Pennsylvania residents, according to the AG's Office.
Those charged:
- David Balosa, 61, of Philadelphia, is accused of sexually assaulting a 4-year-old victim while staying with a family in his congregation. He is charged with aggravated indecent assault, indecent assault, and corruption of minors.
- Errol William Hall, 50, of Delaware County, is accused of inappropriately touching a 16-year-old he met through his congregation. Hall is reportedly an elder in his church which "afforded him access to (...) children," prosecutors said. He is charged with indecent assault and corruption of minors.
- Shaun Sheffer, 45, of Butler County, is accused of sexually assaulting a family member with whom he had a "close relationship" from the time they were 7 years old. He is charged with rape, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, aggravated indecent assault, indecent assault, and corruption of minors.
- Terry Booth, 57, of Panama City, Florida, is accused of inappropriately touching a 16-year-old to whom he was a "mentor" through an Allegheny County congregation. Booth is charged with indecent assault and corruption of minors.
- Luis Manuel Ayala-Velasquez, 55, of Reading, is accused of abusing a family member in their sleep over a period of years, beginning when the alleged victim was 12. The victim has also said Ayala-Velazquez raped her as an adult. He is charged with rape, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, aggravated indecent assault, endangering the welfare of children, and corruption of minors.
“The details of these crimes are sad and disturbing, facts which are made even more abhorrent because the defendants used their faith communities or their own families to gain access to victims,” said AG Henry.
“Our office will never stop working to seek justice for those who have been victimized, and we will continue to investigate and prosecute anyone who harms the most vulnerable in our society.”
Sheffer and Hall were each arraigned on Thursday, July 6, state court records show. Case files for Balosa, Sheffer, and Booth were not immediately available Friday evening.
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