NKY pastor charged with sexual abuse arrested in California, police say
COVINGTON, Ky. (WXIX) - A Northern Kentucky pastor is facing a sex abuse charge after he was arrested in California by the FBI.
Jose Luis Lopez-Hernandez, 50, of Covington, is awaiting extradition back to Kentucky, according to the Covington Police Department.
Police said an investigation started when a minor child reported Lopez-Hernandez had sexually abused them
The sexual abuse happened at the Ministerio Jesus Liberta Church at 16 East 9th Street in Covington in late September, police said they found out during their investigation.
A detective identified 50-year-old Lopez-Hernandez, a pastor at the Covington church, as the suspect, police explained.
The detective learned that Lopez-Hernandez went to California for a missionary trip.
He was supposed to fly back in the second week of October, but police said Lopez-Hernandez skipped his return flight.
An arrest warrant was issued, and authorities called the FBI for help.
On Oct. 12, agents found Lopez-Hernandez in Salinas, California, where he was taken into custody, according to Covington police.
Call Detective Austin Ross at 859-292-2242 or Cincinnati/NKY Crime Stoppers at 513-352-3040 if you have any information.
See a spelling or grammar error in our story? Please click here to report it.
Do you have a photo or video of a breaking news story? Send it to us here with a brief description.
Copyright 2023 WXIX. All rights reserved.
