Oklahoma children’s pastor faces 11 sexual abuse accusers in court

Following an NBC News investigation, nearly a dozen witnesses testified that Joe Campbell, a Pentecostal preacher, groomed and sexually abused them in the 1970s and ’80s.

This article is part of “Pastors and Prey,” a series investigating sex abuse allegations in the Assemblies of God.

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TULSA, Okla. — One after another, each witness stepped to the stand, raised their right hand and swore they were about to speak the truth, so help them God. They told of how their children’s pastor had won their trust before exploiting it behind closed doors. They described how he stalked them through church hallways, under pews, behind the baptismal. How he groped them over bras, under blouses, down pajama pants. How church leaders knew of his alleged misdeeds but repeatedly failed to intervene.

Just a moment.