District Attorney Larry Krasner’s Office held a press conference to announce that Bryan Jackson, 42, senior pastor of The Garden of Prayer World’s Prayer Center, and Isaiah Banks, 30, senior pastor of Second Pilgrim Baptist Church in North Philadelphia, have been charged with sexually abusing and exploiting children. Each faces two counts of sexual abuse of children, sexual exploitation of children, criminal conspiracy, corruption of minors, unlawful contact with a minor, and criminal use of a communication facility, along with related charges, the District Attorney’s Office said. Both men have been arrested, arraigned, and released on bail as they await a preliminary hearing.
The investigation began on April 8, after the Department of Human Services reported that a minor had been induced to send explicit sexual material online for money or food. The case surfaced when someone checked the child’s phone, alerted a therapist, a mandated reporter, who then contacted authorities. The victim was then interviewed by the Philadelphia Children’s Alliance, and the images sent from the victim to Banks were sexual in nature and included requests for sexually explicit videos.
“The predatory sexual abuse committed by both clergy members is an egregious abuse of their positions of trust in the community,” Krasner said, adding that the defendants “are not representative of the countless clergy members who serve with fidelity.”
Those words — positions of trust — sit at the heart of why these crimes are so hard to detect. At least one in four girls and one in twenty boys in the United States experience child sexual abuse in their lifetimes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and about 90% of that abuse is committed by someone the child or the family already knows and trusts.
That is no accident. Predators often gravitate toward churches, schools, and youth sports for the very reasons parents value them: built-in authority, steady access to children, and a community primed to vouch for the helpful volunteer who never says no. The role itself becomes the tool. When suspicion finally stirs, doubt feels like betrayal, and victims fear no one will believe them.
Advocates have a plain message: a trusted title is not a shield. “You are not alone,” said LaQuisha Anthony, acting executive director of the Philadelphia Center Against Sexual Violence (WOAR), which runs a 24/7 crisis hotline.
The charges were brought by the office’s Family Violence and Sexual Assault Unit, a team that prosecutes child exploitation, trafficking, and abuse. Supervisor Katrina Wadas said the unit is working closely with victim advocates to support those affected.
Families can search Megan’s Law website to become aware of convicted child sex offenders and also search the FBI’s National Sex Offender Registry, which compiles records from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, U.S. territories, and numerous tribal nations.
Prevention, experts say, begins at the kitchen table. Let children know they can tell you anything without getting in trouble. Set clear rules about private and public spaces. Favor group activities over one-on-one time with adults, and vet caregivers, coaches, and babysitters with care. Learn the signs of abuse and grooming. And trust the instinct that says no when an adult asks to take your child away alone.
The Philadelphia Police Department has a page for unsolved sexual assault cases. Anyone who has any information or believes they have been victimized can contact the DA’s Victim/Witness Services Unit at 215-686-5709, WOAR’s hotline at 215-985-3333, or the Police Department’s Special Victims Unit at 215-685-3251.