Allegations of child sex abuse against a previous megachurch pastor from California surface in Bucharest, sparking legal action
In a shocking turn of events, a former megachurch pastor named Paul Havsgaard has been accused of sexually abusing and trafficking children for years at a shelter he ran in Bucharest, Romania. The allegations are made in lawsuits filed by two Romanian men, Marian Barbu and Mihai-Constantin Petcu, in U.S. District Court in California.
Havsgaard, a former pastor, is accused of severely abusing dozens of children at the shelter over a period of eight years. The lawsuits detail sexual assault, inappropriate touching, and abuse where children were made to kneel on walnut shells or were tied to their beds or radiators.
The lawsuits allege negligence on the church's part, accusing Laurie and other senior leaders of failing to supervise Havsgaard despite repeated red flags and reports of suspected sexual abuse and poor living conditions at the shelter. The church provided no contact for Havsgaard, and he could not be reached through emails and phone numbers found via online searches.
One of the plaintiffs, Marian Barbu, described life at the shelter as "a torture chamber inside a prison." Barbu and Petcu have accused Havsgaard of showing up regularly in the bathroom while boys were showering or undressed, staring at them or masturbating in their presence. They also allege that Havsgaard "pimped out" older boys for sex work via video chat or at bathhouses and took a cut of their earnings.
The church has stated that most of the allegations in the lawsuits about their church are false and some are slanderous. However, the church has tried to engage with the plaintiffs and reported their allegations to law enforcement, but the men and their lawyer have refused to cooperate with U.S. authorities.
Attorney McAllister expects to file lawsuits involving at least 20 others who say they were abused at the shelter in the coming weeks. Most of the victims are living in poverty and are looking for financial help and vindication.
The Associated Press generally does not name people who say they have been sexually abused unless they come forward publicly, as Barbu and Petcu have done. The current address or contact information of Paul Havsgaard is not publicly available.
The lawsuits also name Harvest Christian Fellowship's founder and senior pastor, Greg Laurie, and other senior church leaders, accusing them of failing to prevent abuse. The church has not commented on these specific allegations.
In a separate incident, a 95-year-old woman has been accused of fatally beating her nursing home roommate, a Holocaust survivor. The details of this case are still emerging, and it remains to be seen how it will impact the ongoing investigation into Havsgaard's alleged crimes.
