Former South Carolina youth pastor facing additional charges after recording girls in church bathroom, deputies say
A now-former youth pastor in Greenville County, South Carolina, is now facing additional charges after videotaping multiple girls in a church bathroom, according to arrest warrants.
Daniel Kellan Mayfield, 35, is now facing eight new charges filed on June 5, five child sexual exploitation charges and three voyeurism charges.
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According to Mayfield's warrants, he admitted in a confession that he recorded girls in the bathroom for his own sexual stimulation.
According to Greenville County Sheriff's Office, investigators found more materials and details concerning potential sexual exploitation that was happening in Greenville County.
Deputies say investigators discovered that Daniel Kellan Mayfield, 35, had unlawfully filmed multiple females, some as young as 14 years old, inside a bathroom of Gowensville Baptist Church in Landrum.
An earlier report from the Greenwood County Sheriff's Office said authorities were called to a home after a female spotted someone outside the bathroom window.
The woman told authorities she went outside and saw Mayfield standing in the backyard alone.
The woman and her sister confronted Mayfield, and the report said Mayfield admitted to taking a video of her while showering.
The women told authorities they were able to see the video from the bathroom on Mayfield's phone.
The female also showed authorities the video she had that showed Mayfield videoing her while she showered, the report said.
Greenville County deputies say officials from Greenwood County contacted them about possible other victims during their initial investigation. Greenville County investigators say they were also able to identify six victims so far at the church, but this is still an ongoing investigation as they work to identify other potential victims obtained through evidence.
According to deputies, investigators learned that Mayfield recorded video inside the women's restroom inside the church on at least three occasions, dating back to July 2022.
A church official at First Baptist Gowensville, in Greenville County, confirms that Mayfield was the student/youth pastor at the church up until the time of his arrest.
Investigators believe that Mayfield acted alone and do not have a reason to believe anyone from the church had knowledge of what he was doing.
Investigators were able to receive five arrest warrants against Mayfield, including first-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and voyeurism.
Mayfield was arrested early Thursday afternoon in Boiling Springs and was taken to the Greenville County Detention Center.
He received no bond Thursday. Another bond hearing is scheduled to be held at the circuit court in the next 30 days.
Conditions were set by the judge if Mayfield bails out.
They are as follows:
- No contact with victims or families
- Placed on house arrest with an ankle bracelet
- Not to be on the internet unless for court-related things
One parent spoke on behalf of all the victims and their families.
"He was entrusted with our children. He took advantage of them in a vulnerable situation. This is not just a one-time deal, it seems to be going on much longer. We don't feel he needs to be released for any reason," one parent said.
For people in the Gowensville community, the news comes as a complete shock.
"You would never think someone you know like family because that's what our church is, a family. You would never think something so devastating would happen in that little circle of people," Isabella Godfry said.
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