Trump Dodges Disaster after Preacher Charged with Sexually Abusing His Own Daughter Is Slated for Vip Role at Black Pastor Event – and Then Disinvited in the Nick of Time
By David Martosko
Asked about Endrei's politically nuclear legal troubles and when they became an issue, the aide responded: 'Please ask Pastor Scott. The campaign was not aware of his [Endrei's] presence or his past.' Unlike boxing promoter Don King, Trump adviser Dr. Ben Carson and his wife Candy, longtime Trump lawyer Michael Cohen and a dozen others, the accused pedophile was a no-show on Wednesday.
One chair was removed from an elevated row of seats behind the podium just minutes before the event began. A New Spirit employee confirmed that it was meant for Endrei. Scott said Endrei was vetted and rejected as part of the process of putting together the event in just 48 hours. 'A friend of a friend put his name down,' he told DailyMail.com, 'but once we scrutinized it – well, he would have been able to attend, but he wasn't going to be a participant.' 'All of the pastors were screened by me,' Scott reiterated. 'The Trump campaign doesn't know Paul Endrei.' Scott said that he had the final say, and was surprised to see Endrei's name on the list Wednesday morning. 'They went by me to double-check who was supposed to be in the chairs. He was never supposed to be there in the first place,' he insisted. Endrei did not respond to messages left at his church office. Scott also hosted Trump and Fox News Channel host Sean Hannity late Wednesday morning for the taping of a town hall broadcast covering African-American issues. He spoke at the Republican National Convention and has served as an information conduit between the Trump campaign and a growing list of black pastors. Endrei, 55, faces multiple felony charges in Lorain County, Ohio including sexual battery and gross sexual 'imposition' on a child under the age of 12. His adopted daughter told Lorain County Children Services that he molested her during three separate periods – in 2005, 2009 and 2013 – according to a grand jury indictment in the case.
The girl was 18 when Endrei was arrested. She was 9 years old when the abuse allegedly began. The Endreis took her in, one of two adopted daughters, at age 3. They also have three biological children. The pastor posted $50,000 bail shortly after his May 30, 2014 arrest and has maintained his innocence ever since. After two years of legal wrangling, a judge has set a jury trial to begin October 17. Pastor Scott told DailyMail.com that he was reserving judgment. 'I was aware of the trouble he was in, but from what I understand he pleaded not guilty,' he said. 'He had some issues in the past, but I didn't know the resolution of it and we haven't heard about this in a long time. I've known him for 20 years, and he's a good guy.' Endrei's eldest son Jordan, an assistant pastor with him, was also indicted on a single charge of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor. Their church, the Westlake, Ohio-based Church on the Rise, issued a statement following their arrests siding with the accused men. 'Pastor Paul and Jordan adamantly deny these troubling charges coming from one person,' the statement read. 'We pray that this troubled adolescent receive the help and counseling she needs. The Church believes in our legal system and that the truth will come out.' 'We are grateful that so many of you expressed such strong support at last Sunday's services,' the statement added. 'We will continue to do everything we can to support Pastor Paul and his family.' A police report filed in the case paints a picture that could exonerate the Endreis. Cleveland Scene magazine reproduced portions of it in October 2014. INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY Pastor Paul Endrei is charged with six child sex-abuse felonies in Lorain County, Ohio, including these specific criminal conditions: 'The offender purposely compels the other person, or one of the other persons, to submit by force or threat of force.' [ ... ] The other person, or one of the other persons, is less than thirteen years of age, whether or not the offender knows the age of that person. [ ... ] ... knowingly touch the genitalia of another, when the touching is not through clothing, the other person is less than twelve years of age, whether or not the offender knows the age of that person [ ... ] The offender is the other person's natural or adoptive parent, or a stepparent, or guardian, custodian, or person in loco parentis of the other person The investigation found that as a 14-year-old, she had accused a 16-year-old neighbor of raping her – but police determined their sexual activity was consensual. Her parents also sought help from police that same year, claiming she had threatened to kill Mrs. Endrei with a knife. The parents told investigators that their daughter was 'sexting boys on her cellphone and has been getting naked via skype to unknown boys all over the country,' according to one police report. Investigators also saw her room, smelling of urine and strewn with soiled underwear. 'She has been leaving the house in the middle of the night to have sex with unknown boys ... They have birth control injected into her arm every 4 months to prevent a pregnancy,' they added in their report. She ran away from home on more than one occasion. Entries on a court docket indicate that Endrei's legal team has asked a judge for a pre-trial ruling on whether to admit into evidence a report called 'Indicators of Child Sexual Abuse.' That brief guide was once published by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services but is no longer in print. It lists among warning signs a broad range of behaviors including many that members of Endrei's church saw in his troubled daughter – but interpret as evidence that she's untrustworthy.
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