$1 million bond stands for man accused of sex charges against 7-year-old at Raleigh church

A longtime member of Raleigh's Good Shepherd Lutheran Church teared up during a hearing Monday as prosecutors laid out allegations against him.

Kenneth Newcomer, 61, is married to the church's recently retired director of children’s ministry. He is charged with two counts of first-degree sex offense with a child and three counts of indecent liberties with a child.

In a letter to the congregation last week, Pastors Richard Goeres and Marsha Anderson wrote, "The crimes were allegedly perpetrated by a non-staff adult male member of the congregation, with incidents of abuse occurring in the church building."

The pastors asked congregants to check in with anyone who participated in children's or youth ministry "to be sure they never experienced abuse of any kind while in our congregation’s care." They encouraged anyone with information to report it to the Wake County Sheriff's Office.

Court documents show the date of alleged the offense was August 2007, when, prosecutors said, the alleged victim was between 7 and 8 years old.

Newcomer's attorney asked for a reduction of his $1,080,000 bond, but District Judge Margaret Eagles allowed that amount to stand.

Newcomer's attorney pointed out that his client had several members of the community willing to put up their homes to help pay his bond.

"He will be found not guilty," his attorney told the court.

Yet Eagles heard from prosecutors an allegation that Newcomer groped a female child and asked her to perform oral sex. As the acts were described, Newcomer winced.

His wife, Barb Newcomer, retired from Good Shepherd Lutheran Church last year, and the pastors' letter said her husband is "no longer an active participant in the life of our congregation" and no longer welcome on the church property on Creedmoor Road.

On Saturday, Goeres sent another letter to members of the congregation announcing Newcomer's arrest, writing, "In the days to come, the entire staff and the rest of church leadership are committed to providing other appropriate spaces for conversation, along with helpful resources about how we can all respond to this heartbreaking news most faithfully."

WRAL News reached out to Goeres, who responded, "We as a church are heartbroken, and we are also proud of the victim for coming forward. We fully support the legal process and are praying for everyone involved."