The Summer of Kreep marches on. Another trusted figure, another position of influence, another man hiding behind a pulpit—allegedly trading CSAM on Kik.

Authorities in Osceola County, Florida, say 22-year-old Ezequiel Rodriguez, the eldest son of the lead pastor at a Kissimmee church, has been charged with ten counts of possessing videos of CSAM. According to investigators, he wasn’t just passively downloading. He was on Kik asking for “young girl” CSAM and offering to trade his own stash.

Now, if you’ve never heard of Kik, it’s one of those messaging apps that never went away despite losing mainstream appeal. It’s anonymous, sketchy, and has long been a haven for sex offenders, pedophiles, CSAM collectors, and child traffickers because it doesn’t require a phone number or much identifying info to create an account. It’s basically the dark alley of app stores.

Rodriguez reportedly used Kik to request the most vile forms of CSAM, and police say they found ten videos during a search of his St. Cloud home. The content, according to investigators, was as horrific as it gets. This wasn’t some edgy chat gone too far. This was full-blown exploitation, and detectives say he knew exactly what he was doing.

But here’s the part that really burns. This wasn’t some shadowy figure off in a corner of the internet. This was the youth pastor. The son of the lead pastor. A man described by his church’s website as being involved in media, worship, and youth ministry. Supposedly a role model. Supposedly a shepherd guiding kids on the right path. Pastors are supposed to be pillars of the community, not secretly building a library of CSAM in their free time.

And let’s not pretend we don’t know how this would be spun if the suspect were, say, a drag performer reading books to kids at a library. There would be round-the-clock coverage. Outrage. New laws. But this guy? A married youth pastor’s son? Crickets.

Because once again, the monster wasn’t in a costume. He wasn’t waving rainbow flags or dancing at pride parades. He was hiding in plain sight. Leading worship. Running media. Chaperoning youth group events. And according to police, collecting CSAM the whole time.

Rodriguez is currently being held without bond. He’s facing serious felony charges. But no matter what happens in court, this is yet another reminder that the real threats to children rarely come dressed in ways that make headlines. Sometimes they’re wearing church polos and holding microphones.

(Source)

• Youth pastor charged with storing and sharing child sex abuse material