The flamboyant and controversial senior pastor of the Prayer Palace has been charged with sexual assault involving a mother and daughter who are parishioners at the mammoth evangelical church in northwest Toronto.

Paul Melnichuk, 80, known to parishioners as “Pastor Paul,” surrendered to police Thursday morning, after being notified of a warrant for his arrest.

Police say the complainants are a woman in her 40s and a woman who is younger than 20. Both were members of the church, founded by Melnichuk and his wife more than 30 years ago.

The pastor is charged with five counts of sexual assault.

During a brief appearance at the Finch Ave. courthouse Thursday afternoon, the lightly tanned pastor — once described as a movie star and the “religious Mel Lastman or Ed Mirvish” — wore a black leather jacket and white collared shirt.

He smiled at his wife, Kathleen, 79 — who sat flanked by son Tom and a blonde woman — as court officers removed his handcuffs.

A publication ban prevents the media from reporting what was said in court and the identities of the two women.

Sitting in the prisoner’s box, Melnichuk turned his head away from his family and looked to the ground as the Crown read out allegations against him. He let out a deep breath and crossed his legs but showed no emotion.

The alleged incidents occurred between May and September 2014 on church property when he was alone with the women, police say.

Three of the five charges laid against Melnichuk relate to allegations from the daughter, the other two complaints from the mother.

Melnichuk was released on $20,000 bail posted by his wife.

“When I first found out about the assaults, it was so hard to believe,” a person close to the alleged victims told the Star. “He used his power to get the family really close to him, to trust him, and when they least expected it, he betrayed that trust, and he violated the family.”

Melnichuk and his twin sons, Tim and Tom Melnichuk, both associate pastors at the church, were the subject of a Star investigation in 2007 that focused in part on the wealth the family had garnered while heading a largely poor, mostly black, congregation.

Information on The Prayer Palace’s website says Melnichuk is the senior pastor at the church. The mammoth building, at Finch Ave and Highway 400, resembles a round spaceship with a large cross on the roof that can be seen for miles.

“Are you for real?” exclaimed Hyacinthe Houghron, a longtime churchgoer and Melnichuk admirer, when told of the charges. Houghron, who left the Prayer Palace seven years ago for personal reasons, said she had never heard any allegations of sexually related misconduct involving Melnichuk.

“I don’t even know what to say; this is a shocker to me. I’m really surprised to hear this . . . I just hope that he’s not guilty.”

At The Prayer Palace Thursday afternoon, a woman demanded Star reporters leave the property. Parishioners outside would not comment on the allegations.

The 2007 Star investigation was part of an ongoing series on Canadian charities and documented the Melnichuks’ lavish lifestyle, which included a personal portfolio of fancy homes in Canada and Florida valued at more than $12 million, and a fleet of fine cars.

Each of the Melnichuks owned a multimillion-dollar estate north of Toronto, and they shared a Florida vacation villa. They and their wives drove a fleet of luxurious cars, including a Porsche Cayenne SUV, a Lexus RX 330 SUV, and Mercedes-Benz CLK 320 convertible.

The Star probe found that in 2005 the Prayer Palace drew $3 million in donations while doling out a meager $9,443 to “benevolent and charity activities.”

In the days following publication of the Star investigation, the Melnichuks took to the stage in the mammoth church, which features coliseum-like seating, preaching that their fortunes had been attained through hard work and wise investments.

“You weren’t designed to live in an apartment building. You were designed to own the apartment building you’re living in,” Tom Melnichuk said, calling on his parishioners to think positive. “If you don’t watch it, you’ll be eating at Denny’s for the rest of your entire life.”

At the time his son Tom was giving the sermon, Pastor Paul Melnichuk was relaxing in a million-dollar mansion in Bradenton, Fla., where the Star photographed him suntanning on a dock on the Manatee River, under a large carving of a pelican.

Upon his arrival back from Florida, Paul Melnichuk flashed a toothy smile and dismissed the controversy.

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“I’ve brought a little bit of Florida with me in my suntan,” Melnichuk told the assembled congregants. “You can see my white teeth better . . . I want so much to look like my congregation.”

During the weekly Sunday sermons, which were televised and featured a large gospel choir, Pastor Paul often urged worshippers to give generously if they wanted the Lord’s blessings.

“What’s a half million dollars to a congregation like this? Peanuts,” Pastor Paul thundered in one sermon, saying the money would go to funding an “evangelical explosion” in Toronto.

Property records obtained by the Star Thursday show Paul and Kathleen Melnichuk own three properties in Canada and as well as a large home on a golf course in Lakewood Ranch, Fla., near Sarasota.

After selling their King City estate for $2 million in 2009, the Melnichuks purchased a $1.3-million home at Lawrence and Avenue Rd. They then bought home in a golf course near Sarasota in 2013 for $785,000, after selling their Bradenton home for $1.1 million. The couple also owns a property in Simcoe region, purchased in 1986 for $465.000, and a waterfront property in Prince Edward County that they bought for $1.19 million in 2012, property records show.

As part of the bail conditions, Melnichuk must reside with his wife at their Picton home or at The Prayer Palace.

According to tax information filed with Revenue Canada for 2013, The Prayer Palace Inc. had a total revenue of $3,219,515 and expenses totaling $2,996,511, the majority of which the church says was spent on charitable activities.

More than one-third of expenses — more than $1.1 million — went to compensation, with one unnamed person on staff taking in between $200,000 and $249,000, according to the organization’s charity return record.

The financial details are more or less the same going back to 2009 (the earliest available), with the exception of 2010, when the Prayer Palace posted $4.5 million in expenditures. More than $2.8 million of that went to compensation, Revenue Canada records show, including two unnamed people who were paid “$350,000 or more” that year.

On its website, the Prayer Palace quotes St. Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians in urging people to be cheerful when donating to the church.

“Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity, for God loveth a cheerful giver.”

The church accepts PayPal.

At the end of the Thursday bail hearing, Melnichuk declined to answer questions from the Star as he walked outside, with his son Tom leading the way. The elder Melnichuk pulled his jacket over his head to in an attempt to avoid being photographed while another member of the entourage put his hand over a Star photographer’s lens.

“He has no comment,” said his lawyer.

Police believe there may be more victims and are encouraging victims to contact investigators at 416-808-3100.