Police: Florida Pastor Bought Child Pornography with Cryptocurrency

A baptist pastor in Florida has been arrested on child pornography charges after he allegedly used cryptocurrency to purchase online child sexual abuse material.

Jonathan Edward Elwing, senior pastor of Palm View Baptist Church, was taken into custody on Friday by the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office after they executed a search warrant at the church and his home, ABC7 reported. 

Detectives from the department’s Internet Crimes Against Children began investigating Thursday after receiving information that the Palmetto man had allegedly made an online purchase of the illegal material. 

Upon searching Elwing’s property, investigators reportedly found “four sexually explicit images of children on his cell phone,” leading to four counts of possession of child pornography.

The pastor has since resigned from his position as he remains in Manatee County Jail. 

The investigation is still ongoing, the local outlet noted. 

When a commenter confronted Palm View Baptist Church about the news on their Facebook page, the church responded by writing, “Sadly, this is correct. We will make a statement in due time.”