Former Ohio Pastor George Bell Charged with Child Rape
Founding Pastor George Bell accused of raping minor under age of 10
The former founding pastor of a church in Columbus, Ohio, has been charged with sexually assaulting a young child.
George Bell
George Bell, 72, the founding pastor of Anchor Baptist Church in Columbus, was arraigned in Franklin County Common Pleas Court on four counts of rape and two counts of gross sexual imposition of a minor under the age of 10. According to court records, he pleaded not guilty to all charges and was released on a $20,000 bond.
The leadership of Anchor Baptist Church, an independent Fundamental Baptist Church, has made a number of public statements about Bell since he surprised the church with his resignation in late June.
“We now know that there was more to the unexpected resignation of our former pastor, George Bell, than we were originally led to believe,” the church stated in July. “It breaks our heart to discover that there have been serious allegations and an indictment that have been brought.”
With Bell’s arraignment this week, the church released another public statement on Tuesday, November 12. “We have been and continue to fully cooperate with any law enforcement and the justice system,” it says. “We invite you to join us in prayer for and support of victims, their families, and individuals involved. We continue to remain loyal to God’s Word and the principles established in Scripture. We sincerely desire your prayers for us to have Godly wisdom and clear direction as we move forward.”
Court records say the alleged crimes began in 2021 and carried on through June 2024. The charges do not involve any congregants of Anchor Baptist.
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The terms of Bell’s bond state that he cannot have any unsupervised contact with minors and he can have no access to the internet.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Why does MinistryWatch report on sex crimes? These stories are tough to read and sometimes even tougher to report, but we think they are vital to our mission to bring transparency, accountability, and credibility to the evangelical church. To read more about why and how we report these stories, read “Why MinistryWatch Reports On Sex Crimes.” You can find that story here.
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