BREAKING: Utah Mormon youth leader, 47, arrested for allegedly attempting to meet 13-year-old girl at LDS church to sexually assault her

Case report: https://floodlit.org/a/b345/ Jacob Fisher (Jake Fisher) was a Mormon church member and ward young men’s leader in Eagle Mountain, Utah. Fisher was arrested in August 2025 for allegedly sending explicit videos of himself to, and attempting to meet to sexually assault, a person he thought was a 13-year-old girl (but was actually an undercover…

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Former Mormon bishop, apostle’s biographer released from jail after allegedly sending explicit photos to and attempting to meet to sexually assault a person he thought was a 14-year-old girl. We got copies of 10 letters of support calling for his release. 7 mention the LDS church.

Last week, we here at Floodlit.org added former Mormon bishop Joseph Walker of Utah to our growing database of reports of sexual abuse in the Mormon church. Walker, 70, was the initial editor in 2008 of MormonTimes.com (see https://web.archive.org/web/20080225160640/http://mormontimes.com/contact.php), a publication of the church-owned Deseret News. In 2021, Deseret Book published a biography of then-apostle…

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Former Mormon bishop, “traditional values” columnist charged with child sexual exploitation

Joseph Walker was a former Mormon bishop, stake presidency counselor and LDS Public Affairs employee in Utah; charged in 2025 with three third-degree felony counts related to child sexual exploitation; allegedly “engaged in several sexually explicit conversations within which he sought or attempted to seduce, lure, and entice [a 14-year-old girl] into engaging in multiple…

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400+ times Mormon officials allegedly sexually abused children or failed to report

Full list: https://floodlit.org/failure-to-report/ Floodlit.org, a non-profit reporting on sexual abuse in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon/LDS), has now surpassed 400 documented instances where bishops or branch/mission/stake presidents allegedly sexually abused children or failed to report child sexual abuse to law enforcement.   A Crisis Uncovered This is *not* a comprehensive list…

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BREAKING: “There is no ‘sexual abuse’ file,” Mormon church risk manager declared in 2023 lawsuit

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (commonly known as the Mormon church) has long positioned itself as a leader in handling abuse, with officials claiming its approach is the “gold standard” and that “no religious organization has done more.” But a startling discovery from a 2023 lawsuit challenges that narrative.   A System…

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Mormon-owned KSL omits church’s name from news on suspected child sexual abuse

Today, KSL reported on the arrest of Ronald Charles Jones of West Jordan, Utah: https://www.ksl.com/article/51353482/elderly-west-jordan-man-arrested-accused-of-sexually-abusing-young-girl- The KSL article pulls information from a police probable cause affidavit, but doesn’t mention the name of the church of which Jones is a member – despite the affidavit itself stating he “is an influential member of his LDS ward…

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Jay Toombs released from prison after admittedly molesting at least 53 children

On July 29, 2025, Jay Toombs was released from prison on parole, according to a person familiar with the case. Case report: https://floodlit.org/a/a360/ 2024 parole hearing: Toombs lives in Logan, Utah, according to the Utah state sex offender registry: https://www.icrimewatch.net/offenderdetails.php?OfndrID=707328&AgencyID=54438 Toombs admitted to molesting at least 53 victims, the source said. Toombs was a younger…

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Does the Mormon church consider child sexual abuse a “serious injury?”

Yesterday, the Arizona Court of Appeals reinstated a sexual abuse lawsuit against the Mormon church, citing the church’s leadership handbook, which says prevention of “serious injury” is a justifiable reason for a bishop or stake president to “disclose confidential information without first seeking guidance.” Read the ruling: https://www.appeals2.az.gov/Decisions/CV20230293Memo.pdf From page 11 of the ruling: “Section…

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