A former youth church leader from Fairfax County, Virginia, was arrested on multiple sexual assault charges of a young person and possession of child pornography.
Fairfax County police said Thomas Weaver, 61, of Fairfax, had been a member of the St. Matthew’s United Methodist Church in Annandale since 2001. He had periodically been a leader in youth activities during his membership there until 2020.
A family member of the juvenile alerted police in June that a relative was sexually assaulted by a member of the church, according to a news release.
Police said Weaver forced the juvenile to meet him in a hidden area in Annandale “on multiple occasions since 2020,” where the victim was sexually assaulted.
Detectives with a warrant searched Weaver’s residence, where they found several images of child pornography on Wednesday, according to police.
Weaver was arrested and charged with 20 counts of possession of child pornography and five counts of indecent liberties of a minor by a custodian. He is being held at the Fairfax County jail without bail.
Police said the church is “fully cooperating” with the investigation and also alerted Fairfax County Child Protective Services with concerns about Weaver.
Detectives believe there may be additional victims, as Weaver worked as a youth leader at “various churches in the past,” according to police.
Anyone with information should is asked to call Fairfax County police at 703-277-2361.
