Leonardo Blair of The Christian Post writes that former youth pastor of Landrum, South Carolina’s First Baptist Gowensville Church, Daniel Kellan Mayfield, faces 46 counts of criminal sexual conduct. According to court records, Mayfield allegedly recorded underage girls in church bathrooms. Charges include first-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and voyeurism.
Now 35, Mayfield worked at the Christian child sponsorship and humanitarian organization Compassion International from 2013, before his arrest.
Blair continues:
First Baptist Gowensville did not immediately respond to calls for comment from The Christian Post on Thursday. Early last month, investigators from the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office discovered that Mayfield, 35, had unlawfully filmed multiple girls, as young as 14 years old, inside the bathroom of the church in Landrum. He was previously charged with five counts of first-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and one count of voyeurism.
This announcement from the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office was made after Mayfield was caught recording a woman outside her bathroom window in Greenwood on May 27. The woman reported that she and her sister found Mayfield standing alone in their backyard after she noticed a light outside the window.
When they initially confronted him about what he was doing, he denied making any recording but eventually confessed to recording the woman while she was showering and gave her his phone so she could view the video. A redacted affidavit details how, after he was caught, Mayfield declared “Oh sh—” before he managed to end the recording.
First Baptist Gowensville has not provided any additional updates on its website about the investigation beyond a May 27th statement about Mayfield’s dismissal.
“On May 27th, 2023, First Baptist Gowensville leadership was made aware of an incident of moral misconduct perpetrated by one of our staff members. Proper authorities were notified immediately, and the employee was terminated from his role,” the statement says. “Due to the nature of the investigation, FBC Gowensville refers all questions to the law enforcement authorities involved. We remain dedicated to providing a safe worship environment and will be ever vigilant in protecting all persons involved in any of our events.”
Mayfield, 35, is facing significant penalties for the charges against him. South Carolina laws punish those convicted of first-degree sexual exploitation of a minor with “imprisonment for not less than 3 years nor more than 20 years.”
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