MARYLAND
WJLA
By Kevin Lewis May 14, 2014
ROCKVILLE, Md. (WJLA) – A 12-member jury holds the fate of a former spiritual leader, accused of repeatedly molesting three teenage boys, in its hands.
Nathaniel Morales accused of abusing boys for decades in Montgomery Co.
On Monday, testimony began in the child sex abuse trial of Nathaniel Morales, 56. The self-professed man of God was most recently preaching in Las Vegas. However back in the late 1980s and early 90s, Morales was a well-respected member of Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg. Then in his mid-20s, Morales led youth bible studies, directed worship teams, and even attended sleepovers with the male teens he mentored. It’s alleged, Morales’ abuse went undetected for years because he exhumed trustworthiness and charm.
“He was charismatic, affable, the life of the party,” the father of Victim #1 testified. “Just one of those guys who walked in the room and people were surrounding him.”
Morales joined Covenant Life Church in the mid-1980s. Although his spiritual life was growing, his professional worth was taking a downward spiral. Morales was soon out-of-work, and terribly low on cash. A fellow parishioner offered-up a room in his home along Sunflower Drive in Rockville. In Oct. 1989, Morales accepted the offer, settling into the basement recreation room. The family’s 15-year-old son also slept in the basement, in an adjacent bedroom.
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