A Georgia pastor who tweeted support
for the June 12th Orlando shootings was arrested Friday
morning on charges of child molestation and aggravated child
molestation.
According to Jacksonville,
Georgia ABC affiliate WJAX, Ken Adkins, 56, turned himself into
Georgia police.
The charges stem from allegations made
by a male former member of Adkins' congregation. Adkins' church, the
Greater Dimensions Christian Fellowship, has locations in Brunswick,
Jacksonville and Atlanta.
Adkins' wife, Charlotte Stormy Adkins,
defended her husband.
“We are disappointed with what
appears to be a rush to judgment by law enforcement authorities in
this case,” she said in a statement. “We are confident that
Kenneth Adkins will be found innocent of all charges.”
Charlotte Adkins called the young man
“deeply troubled.”
Ken Adkins vocally opposed expansion of
Jacksonville's Human Rights Ordinance (HRO) to include sexual
orientation and gender identity. During
the debate, he tweeted an image of Jacksonville City Councilman
Tommy Hazouri, who was leading the effort, with the message, “I
Love Homosexuals. Because I Love Watching. I Am Freaky.”
When asked about the tweet, Adkins told
WJAX: “I think as a pastor – homosexuality, that's vulgar and
that's pornographic, and the whole thought of it.”
After a gunman killed 49 people and
wounded dozens more in an Orlando gay nightclub, Adkins tweeted:
“been through so much with these Jacksonville Homosexuals that I
don't see none of them as victims. I see them as getting what they
deserve!!”
Adkins is expected to appear in court
on Monday.