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Wednesday, September 13, 2006                                                                                       View Comments

Pastor Faces Sex Charges

The pastor of a Winston-Salem NC church has been indicted by a Burke County grand jury on charges of sexually assaulting a 15-year old girl, according to Burke County authorities.

Gregory Michael Butler Sr., 45, of Winston-Salem, was arrested in Forsyth County and returned to Burke County on Tuesday afternoon.

Butler is the pastor of Emmanuel Apostolic Church in Winston-Salem, said Burke County Detective Dean Hennessee.

Butler was charged on the indictments with two counts of felony statutory rape, two counts of felony statutory sexual offenses, and two counts of felony indecent liberties with a minor. He was jailed under a $100,000 secured bond. He was assigned a court date of Oct. 23.

The arrest was the result of a joint investigation between the sheriff's Offices of Burke and Forsyth counties, investigators said.

Hennessee said the investigation shows that Butler had sexual encounters with the minor in both Burke and Forsyth counties.

He said evidence in the case showed Butler was taking the girl to a motel in Burke County, where some of the alleged encounters occurred.

Butler is also under a $75,000 bond in Forsyth County, where additional charges were filed, according to Hennessee.

The Burke County indictments were handed down on Sept. 5.

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