American paedophile pastor of Ketchikan Church in Alaska sentenced to 20 years for raping of a minor.

Dwight “Chris” John was arrested on June 6 by Alaska State Troopers on multiple sex abuse-related charges.

By Edward Era Barbacena 

On Dec. 21, a former Ketchikan church leader was handed a 20 year prison sentence for sexual abuse of a minor.

Earlier this year, Dwight “Chris” John was charged with 14 counts of first, second, and third-degree sexual abuse of a minor, and three related felony charges. 

John pleaded guilty to consolidated charges. On Thursday, Ketchikan Superior Court Judge Katherine Lybrand did the sentencing. She stated that the final sentence of 20 years in prison and 30 years suspended will protect the community. If John, who is 72, is ever released from custody, Lybrand said, he will be a very elderly man subject to strict probation.

Judge Lybrand also recognized that the impacts to the victim and community were profound and the ruling appropriately accounts for that impact.

The victim’s father took the stand at sentencing. He told the court that they have only just begun to fully realize the pain, sorrow, and damage John caused. 

The victim, who is now a teenager, originally reported the abuse to their father. They said John had been abusing them since the age of nine. The father then  reported it to Alaska State Troopers

The victim’s father went on to explain that the faith leader’s crimes “tore apart their family and caused them to leave the state to start fresh elsewhere.” 

According to John’s original charging documents, the former congregation leader of Clover Pass Community Church told the child’s father during a phone call monitored by law enforcement that he almost decided not to take the leadership position because of the abuse. But he said he decided to because he felt God had forgiven him.