HOUSTON (AP) – A longtime Houston-area pastor is being held by authorities on charges he repeatedly sexually assaulted a young girl.

Sixty-five-year-old Paul Christopher Cain was being held Friday in the Harris County jail on charges of sexual abuse of a child and sexual assault of a child.

The Harris County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement Thursday that an investigation began in June when the victim told others she had been abused.

Investigators say Cain used his phone to send several sexually explicit messages to the girl.

They also allege that evidence was found showing he sexually assaulted the girl on several occasions last year when the victim was 13 years old.

Authorities say he served for nearly two decades as pastor of New Canaan Missionary Baptist Church.

Online jail records don’t indicate whether he has an attorney to speak on his behalf.

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