ANGLETON (TX)
The Facts [Lake Jackson, TX]
June 23, 2026
By Gauri B Godbole
Former leader of Clute church charged with sex crimes against kids
A former pastor at Destiny Church in Clute has been indicted on charges he sexually abused three children over a five-year period beginning in 2015, court documents show.
Adrian Gerard Johnson is charged with 18 felonies after a Brazoria County grand jury handed up an indictment against him June 18. The offenses occurred between July 2015 and November 2020, the indictment states.
An indictment is not a determination of guilt, only that enough evidence exists to proceed to trial.
Johnson is charged with four counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child, four counts of sexual assault of a child, four counts of sexual performance by a child, two counts of human trafficking, one count of compelling prostitution, one count of indecency with a child by exposure and one count of sexual assault prohibited under Texas’ bigamy statute.
Lake Jackson police arrested Johnson Tuesday and booked him into the Brazoria County jail, where he remained Tuesday evening without bond, according to jail records.
A woman who answered the phone at Destiny Church confirmed Johnson previously served as a pastor there but said he is no longer affiliated with the church.
“It’s been a while,” the woman said when asked when Johnson last served as pastor.
The woman declined to be identified and declined to discuss Johnson’s time at the church, saying church leadership would address additional questions at a later date.
According to a sermon posted on Destiny Church’s YouTube channel, Johnson last preached at the church May 19, 2024. During the sermon, he spoke about his personal struggles.
“Following God, there have been a lot of times where I’m going through darkness almost daily,” Johnson said in the video.
The earliest allegations involve a child younger than 14 and date to July 2015, according to court documents.
Prosecutors allege Johnson committed sexual acts against the child, produced child sexual abuse material involving the child and later trafficked the child for sexual exploitation.
A second child is the subject of the largest group of charges and include repeated sexual acts against the child between 2016 and 2020. They also allege he produced child sexual abuse material involving the child, trafficked the child for sexual exploitation, compelled the child to engage in prostitution and exposed himself to the child.
One count alleges Johnson committed sexual assault involving a child Texas law prohibited him from marrying.
The remaining allegations involve a third child in 2019. Prosecutors allege Johnson committed sexual acts against the child and produced child sexual abuse material involving them.
The indictment alleges all 18 charges were part of the same criminal episode, meaning prosecutors contend the offenses were connected.
If convicted, each of the four first-degree felony counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child carries a possible punishment of five to 99 years or life in prison.
Each of the four first-degree felony counts of sexual performance by a child carries a possible punishment of 15 to 99 years or life in prison. Each of the two first-degree felony trafficking charges carries a possible punishment of 25 to 99 years or life in prison. The first-degree felony charge of compelling prostitution carries a possible punishment of 15 to 99 years or life in prison.
Each of the four second-degree felony counts of sexual assault of a child carries a possible punishment of two to 20 years in prison. The second-degree felony charge of indecency with a child by exposure and the second-degree felony charge of sexual assault under Texas’ bigamy statute each carry a possible punishment of two to 20 years in prison.