New rape charges for pastor convicted of molestation: JPSO

A Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office shield.

A pastor and registered sex offender convicted twice for sexually abusing minors is now facing new charges for allegedly raping two teenage boys, according to the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office.

Terry Reed, 63, whose church, Vessels of Christ Ministry, was operated out of his Terrytown home, preyed upon the victims, ages 15 and 16, sleeping in the nude with them and telling them the sexual activity with him would provide the teens the "covering of Jesus" and "help them become a man," according to Capt. Jason Rivarde, spokesperson for the Sheriff's Office.

Terry Reed

Detectives first arrested Reed on June 29 and rearrested him Tuesday after the second victim came forward, Rivarde said. He was booked with five counts of third-degree rape, four counts of indecent behavior and sexual battery.

The allegations are similar to those from Reed's 2017 conviction for molestation and indecent behavior with a juvenile, according to authorities. In that case, he pleaded guilty to sleeping naked with a then-15-year-old boy, inappropriately touching the teen and forcing him to wash Reed, Jefferson Parish court records said.

In the new investigations, a 19-year-old man contacted the Sheriff's Office in June to report that he'd been abused by Reed, according to Rivarde. The victim met Reed through Reed's church.

The rapes and inappropriate contacts occurred on multiple occasions over a two-year period, starting around the time the victim was 16, Rivarde said.

When questioned by detectives, Reed said he only engaged in consensual contact with the victim after the teen turned 18, according to Rivarde.

Reed was booked on rape and indecent behavior charges. He was released July 5 from the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center in Gretna on a $150,000 bond, court records said.

But after word spread of the investigation, the second victim, a 29-year-old man, contacted detectives in early July, Rivarde said. He accused Reed of raping him multiples time when he was about 15. Like the first victim, he, too, met Reed through Reed's in-home church, Rivarde said.

Detectives took Reed back into custody Tuesday. He did not give a statement to investigators about the second victim, Rivarde said.

During a hearing Friday morning, Jefferson Parish Criminal Commissioner Paul Schneider set Reed's bail at $250,000 for the charges related to the second victim, court records said.

Reed's criminal history includes a 1997 conviction for indecent behavior with a juvenile, Jefferson Parish court records said. The details of that case were not available. But in his plea, he admitted inappropriate sexual contact with a teenage boy who was living with him, court records said.

Judge Martha Sassone of the 24th Judicial District Court suspended a five-year sentence in the case and ordered Reed to serve five years of active probation.

When Reed pleaded guilty to molestation and indecent behavior in the 2017 case, Judge Glenn Ansardi also suspended a five-year sentence and placed him on five years of probation, court records said.

Reed completed his probation in June 2022, according to Rivarde. But he is required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life, the Sheriff's Office said.

Reed's Marlin Court home in Terrytown was at the center of an investigation into the mysterious deaths of two boys who were found fully clothed and submerged in a hot tub at the residence on June 30, 2022.

The bodies of Christian Reed, 13, Terry Reed's adopted son, and Jamichael Spencer, 12, a cousin, showed signs of being whipped with a wire cord and beaten, the Sheriff's Office said at the time.

The Jefferson Parish Coroner's Office eventually determined the boys died of electrocution complicated by elevated body temperatures and blunt force trauma. A defective extension cord plugged into a nearby radio was stapled to the hot tub, according to authorities.

Terry Reed was never implicated in the boys' deaths. An unidentified woman was arrested in the physical abuse case, though the outcome of the case was not immediately available.

Sheriff's Office investigators aren't sure if they've identified all of Reed's possible victims, Rivarde said.

Anyone who believes they have been victimized by Terry Reed or has information about the case is asked to call the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office Special Victims Section at 504-364-5300 or Crimestoppers at 504-822-1111 or toll-free at 1-877-903-7867.

Email Michelle Hunter at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter, @MichelleHunter.

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