Police in South Carolina say a man was caught on tape sexually abusing a three-year-old boy, with media reports saying he “performed oral sex” on the toddler.

Jacop Robert Lee Hazlett, a volunteer with Newspring Church as well as one other church in the state, was charged with first-degree criminal sexual conduct with a minor. A judge recently denied bond for the defendant.

Investigators say Hazlett escorted a 3-year-old boy into a bathroom at the Newspring Church, located in the 5100 block of Ashley Phosphate Road on Nov. 25. The affidavit states the boy used the restroom and when he was finished, Hazlett performed oral sex on him before pulling the boy’s pants back up. The act was also caught on video surveillance cameras, according to the affidavit. An investigator said the incident happened inside the bathroom and was caught on a camera positioned outside the bathroom.

Thank the God who doesn’t exist for that appropriately positioned camera. While perhaps technically and legally accurate, let’s be clear about what he did. “Performing oral sex” sanitizes his sexual abuse, plain and simple.

At least the church understood the problem immediately and reported it to secular authorities. They even admitted discovering further evidence of child abuse by Hazlett.

Once we were made aware, we reviewed video footage from the past 90 days in which Hazlett served as a Kidspring volunteer. In the videos, it appears there was inappropriate conduct by Hazlett. We immediately took steps to prevent Hazlett from volunteering in any capacity at our church in the future and, at the same time, we reported this information to law enforcement. NewSpring is fully cooperating with law enforcement’s ongoing investigation.

The church added that they undertook an extensive criminal background check before allowing Hazlett to work with children and all reports came back spotless. It doesn’t seem like there’s anything else they could have done. They also told parents at the church to contact law enforcement if they believe their child was a victim.

With that, another child abuser who clings to an image of religious purity bites the dust.

(Screenshot via Live5News)

