Warning: This story contains graphic depictions of abuse.
A Christian organization long plagued by allegations of child sexual abuse is accused of failing to protect a girl from one of its colleagues at its missionary training center.
Ethnos360 is a Sanford, Florida-based religious nonprofit organization formerly known as New Tribes Mission that sends missionaries and their families to far-flung parts of the world. In 2019, multiple women told NBC News that decades ago they were assigned to serve as “dormitory fathers” (who were assigned to care for children at New Tribes Mission overseas boarding schools while their parents served in the field). She said that she had been sexually abused by a missionary who had injured her.
The group issued a public apology to abuse victims following an NBC News report and after an independent group commissioned by New Tribes Mission shared recommendations in 2010 amid abuse allegations. , said it has “incorporated important child safety training.”
But Monday’s lawsuit alleges that six years after those recommendations were issued, the girl was repeatedly sexually abused by another child at Ethnos360’s missionary training facility in Missouri. The lawsuit was filed in Florida’s 18th Judicial Circuit Court and was first obtained by NBC News.
“Ethnos360 has a history of child sexual abuse in their communities in various locations around the world. They have certainly been educated on this issue,” said the former sex crimes prosecutor who filed the lawsuit. said attorney Boz Tchividian, grandson of evangelist Billy Graham. Mr. Tchividjian is the founder and former executive director of Godly Response to Abuse in Christian Environments (GRACE), a group hired in 2010 to make recommendations to New Tribes Mission. is not a member of GRACE.
The lawsuit is being filed on behalf of the girl and her parents who allege abuse. According to the complaint, the girl and her alleged abuser, who is also female, lived on campus with her family while her father worked in Ethnos360’s IT department. The alleged abuse began in 2016, when the girl (AW), identified only by her initials in the complaint, and her alleged perpetrator were both about 9 years old, Tchividian said.
The complaint says the abuse occurred over several years and ranged from unwanted touching of AW’s breasts and private parts to vaginal penetration with sticks and hairbrushes. The organization said Ethnos360 did not “provide any education or training related to peer-to-peer child sexual abuse to those residing on Ethnos campuses” and did not properly investigate allegations of abuse. I’m accusing them of not having it.
AW, now 17 years old, suffers from “emotional distress, emotional distress, attempted suicide, an eating disorder, humiliation, embarrassment, and loss of ability to enjoy life,” according to the complaint. In an exclusive Zoom interview with her parents, she told NBC News that the alleged abuse and the way Ethnos360 handled her complaint left a deep mark on her.
“I’ve been through a lot, but I still have a lot of struggles just with PTSD and anxiety,” AW said. “You have to take things day by day.”
The lawsuit names Ethnos360 as a defendant. Brian Coombs, who was the organization’s director of child safety at the time of the sexual abuse allegations, is not named as a co-defendant, but is mentioned throughout the complaint and is not properly trained to protect children. The government accuses the government of failing to protect children. Ensure that the alleged perpetrator is not left alone with other children after learning about AW
Coombs did not immediately respond to a request for comment from NBC News. So did Ethnos360’s lawyers.
suspicions of the past
Ethnos360 addresses past allegations of child sexual abuse in a statement on its website that states, “We are committed to protecting children by reducing dangerous situations, holding adults in contact with children accountable, and training our members on child safety policies.” “We’re trying to stay safe.” It also links to a 16-page document containing “facts about the tragic realities of child abuse that have occurred throughout the history of the New Tribes Mission.”
According to Monday’s lawsuit, AW said she did not tell anyone about what was happening because her alleged assailant threatened to tell her family. AW told her parents and therapist in March 2021, two years after she and her family moved from Missouri to Florida. Her parents reported the allegations to Coombs and the Florida Department of Children and Families that same month, according to the complaint.
According to the complaint, the girl was interviewed by Florida authorities, who “verified findings of child-on-child sexual abuse” and determined that the alleged perpetrator may have victimized other children. She reportedly expressed concern that she may have been a victim of sexual abuse herself. However, Ethnos360 said it “made no effort” to find out where the alleged perpetrator learned about the sexual activity.
The complaint says Coombs immediately reported the alleged abuse to the Missouri Department of Human Services and implemented a “safety plan” for the alleged perpetrator to protect other children around her. He added that he assured his family. However, in the months that followed, the alleged perpetrator was “left alone with the children on numerous occasions”.
According to the complaint, during that time, Missouri authorities “never conducted a substantive investigation or referred the matter to local law enforcement,” and closed the case in the summer of 2021, resolving AW and the alleged perpetrator. conducted an investigation and concluded that Mr. AW was no longer a danger. “We no longer have access to each other.”
The Missouri Department of Human Services declined to discuss the matter with NBC News, saying, “Information related to certain child abuse and neglect investigations is not confidential under Missouri law except in very limited circumstances.” It’s public and classified,” he said.
According to the complaint, Coombs conducted his own fact-finding in the summer of 2021, including speaking with other families at Ethnos360’s training campus.
However, when Ms AW’s family met with Mr Coombs in October 2021 to discuss the findings of the investigation, they said he concluded that what had happened was “inappropriate sexual activity between peers” rather than sexual abuse. The complaint states that he learned that he would be
AW said he was furious when he heard that.
“I felt so hopeless,” she said. “I thought, ‘Oh, this is this person, this is the person I’m supposed to get help from. So if he doesn’t give me help, I’m going to get it. I don’t think so.” I was really confused. ”
Disappointed, her parents met with Ethnos360’s then-CEO Larry Brown in June 2022 to discuss the situation. The suit alleges that Brown told her to “leave things between God and others because it would be difficult for anyone to start over.”
Brown did not immediately comment.
AW’s parents said they felt like Ethnos360 was out of touch with the issue.
“We hope that mission leaders will take responsibility for this issue and show that they care about our daughter and the other families and children on our campus. AW’s father, Grant Whidden, specifically told NBC News. The suspect and his family remained on the premises of Ethnos360.
Rather, he said, “Once we learned that the state of Missouri wasn’t going to move forward with this investigation, we felt like we didn’t have to do anything ourselves.”
The lawsuit, which seeks compensatory damages and a jury trial, alleges that Ethnos360 was obligated to provide training to its employees on how to identify and report child abuse, including peer-to-peer abuse. It also says Ethnos360 breached its obligations to AW by failing to properly investigate her claims.
AW’s mother, Tracy Whidden, said what happened to her daughter shattered her view of Ethnos360, but not her faith in God.
“I feel like God despises the leadership and sheds tears over the way they’re handling this issue. And God has righteous anger over all of this,” she said. . “These leaders are not being held accountable by anyone but themselves.”
AW said the decision to file the lawsuit “took a lot of thought and prayer” and said she hopes the lawsuit will help others who have experienced sexual abuse.
“This does not define them,” AW said. “They are not victims. They are survivors and there is hope.”
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, call the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 1-800-656-4673. A hotline run by the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network (RAINN) puts you in touch with your local rape crisis center. You can also access RAINN’s online chat service at https://www.rainn.org/get-help. Confidential chat is available in English and Spanish.
