BALTIMORE (MD)
CBS News [Baltimore, MD]
June 8, 2026
By Adam Thompson
A former Baltimore County youth pastor pleaded guilty on Monday to sexually abusing a minor.
Thomas Pinkerton Jr., 52, was arrested at his home in Georgia in August 2025 and was extradited to Maryland. He was charged with 24 charges, including multiple counts of child abuse, assault, sex offense, and sexual abuse of a minor.
Under a plea deal, Pinkerton faces up to four years in prison. He will spend five additional years on probation and will have to register as a sex offender.
Pinkerton, who was a pastor at Central Christian Church in Rossville, sexually abused teenage boys between 2006 and 2010.
Victims reported sexual abuse by a youth pastor
Pinkerton pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a single victim, according to our media partner, The Baltimore Banner, but prosecutors plan to include the others who reported abuse at the sentencing.
According to court records, the victim told police that Pinkerton gave him massages, held his hand, and touched his privates.
Charging documents filed in August 2025 showed that at least six men alleged they were sexually abused by youth pastor Pinkerton at Central Christian Church and at his Baltimore County home.
At the time of his arrest, Pinkerton was living in Georgia with his wife and three children. He had been a pastor in at least five states, including Maryland.
One victim said he was abused by Pinkerton between July 2007 and July 2009. The victim said Pinkerton had a “group of male youth that became known as favorites.”
The victim said Pinkerton displayed a pattern of favoritism and inappropriate behavior that caused jealousy within the group.
Another victim said he initially viewed Pinkerton as a “spiritual father.” He told police that he became suspicious when Pinkerton began sharing a bed with mal youth during out-of-state mission trips, while his wife stayed with the female group members, according to charging documents.
Another victim, who said he met Pinkerton in 2006, said that the youth pastor invested more time and money into “athletic, good-looking, popular males,” court documents revealed. He reported being sexually abused between 2006 and 2010.
A fourth victim said he was abused from 2008 to 2010. A fifth victim said Pinkerton babysat him and abused him between April and July 2007. A sixth individual reported abuse from 2006 to 2010.
Pastor said sexual abuse was “deeply heartbreaking”
Central Christian Church said in 2025 that Pinkerton was youth pastor at the church more than 15 years ago before he left to start his own ministry.
Larry Kirk, the lead Pastor of Central Christian, said last year that the news was “deeply heartbreaking.”
“We are committed to walking alongside these young men with compassion and support,” Kirk said. “There is absolutely no place for abuse – ever – in the church.”