Deputies arrested a Lakeland church youth pastor accused of trying to have sex with a teenage girl.
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said the youth pastor, 29-year-old Andrew Weaver, worked for Highlands Church of Christ. But when church leaders learned that Weaver may have had an inappropriate relationship with a minor in his youth group, the sheriff said they notified detectives.
According to investigators, Weaver had been “informally counseling” the 17-year-old girl when he asked to see nude photographs of her. The two then began talking about sexual fantasies, the sheriff said.
“Instead of him being the adult in the room, he creates a relationship with a 17-year-old child,” Judd said. “Did I tell you that he’s 29, and married, and a youth pastor?”