4 hours ago
Last Updated:February 27, 2025, 23:48 IST
As per the lawsuit, Pastor John Paul Miller, 44, allegedly raped a 15-year-old girl in 1998 when he was 19 and used his church as a "sexual playground."
Accused pastor John Paul Miller (Myrtle Beach Police Department)
A South Carolina pastor, whose wife died by suicide after filing for divorce, has been accused of raping a 15-year-old girl dating back nearly three decades, a new lawsuit has claimed.
As per the lawsuit, Pastor John Paul Miller, 44, allegedly raped a 15-year-old girl in 1998 when he was 19 and used his church as a “sexual playground," The Mirror reported.
The plaintiff in the complaint filed in Horry County Circuit Court, alleged that the assault took place during Sunday school at All Nations Church, Fort Mill, which was led by Miller’s dad at the time.
He allegedly took the girl into his dad’s office before forcing her outside to his truck, where he inappropriately touched her and sexually assaulted her.
Further, the lawsuit alleged that Miller attempted to justify his actions using a Bible verse, telling the then minor victim, “No man is without sin and temptation. God understands that."
The plaintiff further claimed that Miller — the controversial pastor at Solid Rock Church in Myrtle Beach — assaulted her again years later when she ran into him during a trip to the city in 2023, the report added.
The pastor leaned in to give her a hug before suddenly shoving “his hand down her pants touching her genitals without consent," the lawsuit alleged.
The suit, which has named All Nations Church and Solid Rock Church as defendants, accused him and other leaders of covering up a pattern of alleged abuse over the years. “This church was JPM’s sexual playground," the suit claimed.
The plaintiff expressed deep remorse upon learning about the death of Miller’s wife last year, believing that speaking out earlier could have prevented further harm. “She had heard that there were multiple other victims over the years," her lawyer Randall Hood said to WBTV.
Miller has been under heavy scrutiny since his wife Mica Miller, 30, was found dead in Lumbee River State Park in North Carolina in April last year from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. She took her life days after serving him with divorce papers, and police ruled her death a suicide.
The pastor, however, has denied any allegations of grooming and abuse. Earlier, he had said that his wife had suffered from mental illness, had made previous attempts to take her own life and was hospitalised on multiple occasions.
Location :United States of America (USA)
First Published:February 27, 2025, 23:48 IST
News world Pastor Accused Of Raping 15-Year-Old Minor, Using Church As His ‘Sexual Playground’
