If you or someone you know needs resources or support related to sexual violence, contact the Maine Coalition Against Sexual Assault’s 24/7 hotline at 800-871-7741.
The former facilities director for Bread of Life Ministries in Augusta will serve one year in prison after being convicted of sexually abusing a teenage girl.
Jeffrey Tyler, 51, of Augusta pleaded guilty to one count of sexual abuse of a minor, according to the Kennebec Journal.
As part of a plea agreement, two gross sexual assault charges were dropped, one a felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison.
Tyler was sentenced to five years with all but one suspended.
He was arrested at the ministries in Augusta in September 2019.
According to the Kennebec Journal, the victim told police she and Tyler “became sexually involved” when she was 14 years old. The victim reportedly told police that the two emailed each other since she was 12 and sent nude pictures to each other when she was 15.
“You took advantage of a vulnerable 14-year-old girl for your own sexual benefits,” the victim said in a statement read in court by a victim advocate.