RICHMOND (VA)
Richmond Times-Dispatch
Posted: Wednesday, May 29, 2013
BY BRANDON SHULLEETA Richmond Times-Dispatch
The leader of a group of child sexual abuse victims on Tuesday demanded an apology from supporters of a Richmond pastor charged with sexually assaulting two young girls in Texas.
Geronimo Aguilar, pastor of the Richmond Outreach Center, faces charges in Texas for alleged offenses dating to 1996. He is on a paid leave from the church, whose board released a statement last week saying it “believes the accusations against him to be completely untrue and unfounded.”
At a public gathering of three people and several reporters outside the Richmond Police Department, Becky Ianni, the Virginia director for the Survivor Network of those Abused by Priests, called for an apology and said supporters should back Aguilar only quietly if they must do so while he’s being investigated.
“Publically supporting the accused perpetrator is not only hurtful to alleged victims but very intimidating to other victims who might be thinking about coming forward,” Ianni said.
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