JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (BP) – Accusations of sexual abuse going back 10 years have brought sexual battery charges and the arrest of a former youth pastor and minister who was on staff or volunteered at several Jacksonville-area churches.
Joshua Allen Trent, 42, was admitted into the Duval County Jail April 12 and charged with two counts of sexual battery following an investigation that began in January. He was released 10 days later on an $800,000 bond – $400,000 for each charge.
He is scheduled to appear at 9 a.m. May 14 for a hearing on motion at the Duval County Courthouse.
A First Coast Crime Stoppers tip received Jan. 16 stated that Trent had sexually abused an underage female. Local media reports state the woman, who didn’t make the initial report, was 15 years old at the time the alleged abuse started in 2016. She ended communications with Trent in March 2022.
Trent served as youth pastor at Hillcrest Baptist Church from June 2016 through April 2018.
A detective with the Special Assault Unit in the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office interviewed the alleged victim, now 25. She recounted how Trent built trust with her family and gradually began molesting her both at the church and at a separate workplace, a software company named ChurchTrac. The alleged abuse included at least one videoed act.
One of the girl’s parents was away serving in the military, which also made her susceptible to abuse, an affidavit recorded. Trent would eventually control her social media accounts. As the girl grew older and expressed wishes to stop Trent’s actions, he maintained control by threatening to kill himself with a handgun he kept in a backpack. The alleged victim said she had seen the gun and felt he was serious, leading her to stay quiet.
“This trust and position the suspect held allowed him to assume a custodial relationship with the victim,” the affidavit states. In addition to interacting at the church, Trent also had authority over the girl at ChurchTrac, where she helped move items. She also reports that abuse took place in the Trent home, where she was a babysitter for the family.
“… [H]e assumed complete custody over her,” the affidavit said. “If at any time during these three circumstances, the victim needed to be contacted by [REDACTED] or had an emergency, the suspect would have been the primary point of contact.”
Hillcrest Baptist Pastor Chris Pruitt said the church is aware of the situation, calling it “deeply concerning and it grieves our hearts.”
“First and foremost, our prayers and concern are with those affected,” he said in a statement. “We are committed to supporting those involved with compassion, care, and respect for their privacy.
“We take matters like this seriously. The individual is no longer associated with our church and has not been since 2018. We are fully cooperating with the authorities as they conduct their investigation, and we remain committed to integrity, safety, and accountability in our ministry.”
According to ACP reports and responses from churches, Trent served in full-time, part-time and volunteer roles at several Jacksonville congregations near his home.
Beginning in January 2009, he was a full-time collegiate ministry leader and missions development director at Hillcrest Baptist. In the fall of 2011, he moved on and began as children’s pastor at Normandy Park Baptist Church, where he remained until mid-2013.
In February 2015, Trent started as associate pastor at Woodstock Baptist, a position that included leadership roles with students and children. His time there ended in April 2016, two years before the church disbanded. Trent then returned to Hillcrest as youth pastor in June 2016 until his departure in April 2018.
Trent joined ChurchTrac in 2012 as vice president, staying until his termination in November 2021.
Two weeks before his firing, detectives approached ChurchTrac’s owner to investigate Trent over a complaint submitted by Instagram. It concerned a possible pornographic image of a minor that had been tracked to a ChurchTrac IP address. During the investigation, the owner said he recounted seeing the girl often with Trent, including going into his office alone, and otherwise being “friendly” in a way that would not be appropriate for a juvenile female and an adult twice her age.
Trent told investigators that the image was related to an individual with whom he was having an affair. No criminal charges were brought forward regarding the incident.
The alleged victim confirmed in the recent affidavit that the image was of her.
During the 2021 investigation, the woman told detectives that Trent called her as she was in her college’s library to tell her the police were at ChurchTrac. He advised her to get rid of a password-protected thumb drive that contained love letters and nude photos of him. He further advised her that if the police spoke with her, to say, “I (the suspect) never touched you.”
According to the arrest report, detectives observed Trent leaving Westside Baptist Church in Jacksonville Sunday, April 12, and proceeded to follow him to a local sandwich shop, where he was arrested without incident.
Westside Senior Pastor Keith Russell told Baptist Press that Trent is a member of the church. He is not on staff, nor does he serve in a volunteer position.
If you are/have been a victim of sexual abuse or suspect sexual abuse by a pastor, staff member or member of a Southern Baptist church or entity, please reach out for help at sbcabuseprevention.com/helpline or call 833-611-HELP.
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