Crime & Safety
Youth Pastor Accused of Manipulating Manchester Teen
The 32-year-old is now facing sexual assault charges.
Editor’s note: We published this story earlier in the week, but here it is again in case you missed it.
A 32-year-old East Longmeadow man is accused of manipulating a Manchester teen, reports the Hartford Courant.
Jimmy Chang, a youth pastor, was charged with 12 counts of second-degree sexual assault and was held on $350,000 bond. He is due to appear in Manchester Superior Court on Sept. 11.
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Chang persuaded the 17-year-old girl to sneak out of her Manchester house and convinced her that she did not have to save her virginity. State law prohibits sexual relations between a person over age 20 who “stands in a position of power, authority or supervision” over a person under age 18.
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The girl was a member of a Christian youth group based in Agawam, Mass., and Chang was a leader of the group. He was also a tutor with a Longmeadow-based company.
To read the full Courant article, click here.
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