A pastor who was facing charges in Maryland for sexually abusing a minor was allowed to take charge of a children’s ministry in New York, according to recent reports.

RT noted on Monday that 32-year-old Pastor Shaun M. Ross had been arrested in July for two counts of sexually abusing a minor while serving as director of a student ministry at the Cavalry Assembly church. Those charges were connected to activities that dated as far back as 2008.

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But in April, Ross and his wife had taken over the children’s programs at Victory Christian Center in North Syracuse.

“We are excited to announce that Shaun and Brandi Ross will be assuming leadership in our Children’s ministry,” the church wrote on Facebook at the time. “Bring your children this Sunday for Kidz Revolution! They will love it!”

The Syracuse Post-Standard reported that both Shaun Ross and his father, Pastor Terry Ross, had notified Victory Christian Center about the charges.

“Pastor Terry Ross and son Shaun disclosed that Shaun had been accused of sexual misconduct while serving on the staff of a church in the Baltimore, Maryland, area and that charges are pending,” Foursquare Churches Assistant District Supervisor Dan Ussery, who oversees both the churches in Maryland and New York, said in a statement.

Ussery insisted that Shaun Ross was not allowed to have contact with minors or work for the church while he was under investigation. He did not respond to questions about why the Victory Christian Center had named Ross as the head of the children’s program.

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Onondaga County First Chief Assistant District Attorney Rick Trunfio told the Post-Standard that Shaun Ross was not supposed to have any contact with minors while the case was ongoing. An investigator had contacted the Victory Christian Center, he said.

Shaun Ross is scheduled to be tried in Frederick, Maryland in January.

[image of priest in handcuffs via Shutterstock.com]