Prominent pastor snagged in sex sting
Senior Dot minister, nine others charged with soliciting prostitute
The prominent Boston minister who blessed Gov. Charlie Baker after he was elected to the Corner Office was caught soliciting a prostitute during an undercover police sting that also reeled in nine other would-be johns, authorities said.
A. Livingston Foxworth, the senior pastor at the Grace Church of All Nations in Dorchester, was arraigned yesterday in Boston Municipal Court on a single charge of paying for sexual conduct. He was released without bail after a brief appearance.
Foxworth gave newly elected Baker and his wife, Lauren, a blessing in November 2014 during a Grace Church of All Nations service.
“Gov. Baker is saddened by this news and is confident the courts will examine the facts and reach an appropriate decision,” said Lizzy Guyton, a spokesman for Baker. “The Baker-Polito Administration has made combating human trafficking a priority by working across state government to enact anti-trafficking policies and proposing legislation to give law enforcement more tools to crack down on trafficking-related crimes.”
The pastor and his attorney, Hassan Williams, declined to comment yesterday.
Foxworth and nine other men were busted in the Tuesday afternoon sting, according to authorities. Detectives from the Boston Police Department’s Human Trafficking Unit conducted an “undercover online investigation into illegal sexual services being offered for a fee,” according to an incident report.
Detectives posing as a female on the infamous online classified ad website Backpage.com were contacted by Foxworth and the other men, according to authorities. Foxworth agreed to pay $150 for sex and went to an address on Pine Street for an illicit rendezvous, according to police.
Once he arrived, detectives called the number Foxworth provided and it started to ring, a police report states. He was placed under arrest, and his cellphone was placed into evidence, according to authorities.
“Human trafficking exists because sex buyers make it profitable,” Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said in a statement. “Part of our strategy is making clear that there are social, financial, and legal consequences for that behavior in Boston and Suffolk County.”
Williams tried to convince Boston Municipal Court Judge Thomas Horgan to drop the charge and give Foxworth a civil infraction but Suffolk prosecutor Jessica Meyer pushed back.
“This is a matter that your honor has arraigned for almost 10 other defendants today and no action was taken with them regarding a civil infraction,” Meyer said.
Horgan agreed with Meyer, and Foxworth is slated to return to court July 26.
Nine defendants were arraigned yesterday.
In a statement, police Commissioner William B. Evans hailed the arrests as part of “a constant effort to address the demand for purchased sex.”
“Over the past two weeks, the unit has arrested approximately 25 ‘ johns’ in Brighton and downtown, including the 10 arrested in Chinatown (Tuesday) night, and the BPD will continue to target the criminals that buy sex,” Evans said. “This is not a victimless crime, and by targeting the demand for human trafficking, we intend to eliminate the abuse of the victims that become caught up in this trade.”
‘This is not a victimless crime.’ — WILLIAM B. EVANS police commissioner