Mark Hatcher, 59, of Blue Bell.
The leader of a Philadelphia-based church is being held without bail at the Montgomery County Correctional Facility, after authorities alleged that he raped and sexually abused three children over an eight-year period.
Mark Hatcher, 59, of Blue Bell, was arraigned by District Judge Katherine McGill this afternoon on charges of rape, statutory sexual assault, unlawful restraint, sexual assault, indecent assault, endangering the welfare of minors, corruption of minors and related offenses. Judge McGill denied bail due to Hatcher being “a danger to the community,” court records show.
Hatcher is a pastor at Holy Ghost Headquarters, located along the 800 block of North Broad Street in Philadelphia.
The investigation began on Jan. 3, when an unnamed male went to the Whitpain Township Police Department to report that he had been sexually assaulted multiple times at Hatcher’s Blue Bell home over a two-year period, according to charging documents. The victim told police that Hatcher allegedly kissed him, groped his groin and buttocks, made him take his clothes off, and masturbated in front of him, across five separate incidents spanning the summer of 2006 through the summer of 2007.
The victim was between the ages of 6 and 7 years old at the time of the alleged abuse, police said.
Also on Jan. 3, a second victim — an unnamed female — told investigators that she was sexually abused by Hatcher in December 2000 when she was 15 years old. The victim stated that she was cleaning out a closet in her room when Hatcher allegedly entered the room and began a conversation. When the victim turned around, Hatcher was lying on the bed with his robe completely opened, exposing his naked body, the report states. Hatcher then kneeled down behind the girl and began tickling her, before beginning to grope her breasts, according to the criminal complaint.
As police continued their investigation, a third victim surfaced who previously filed a complaint with the Philadelphia Police Department’s Special Victims Unit in November 2008, stating that she had allegedly been raped by her pastor when she was 13 years old.
The third victim told police that in 2006, she had gone to dinner in New Jersey with Hatcher, and they stopped to check on a house being renovated along the 2800 block of West Oxford Street on their way home. Inside of the home, Hatcher allegedly pushed the victim onto an old mattress in an upstairs bedroom, put a condom on and began raping the teen, before stopping and saying he was “going to save [her] for her husband,” according to the complaint.
Police said the victim screamed and attempted to resist, however Hatcher placed his arms over her mouth and held the victim down. It is unclear if charges were ever filed against Hatcher in connection with the alleged 2006 rape.
A call to Philadelphia Police was not returned as of press time.
Charges were officially filed against Hatcher on May 17, and he was taken into custody and arraigned at 2:30 p.m. on May 18. Court records do not indicate an attorney for Hatcher at this time.
Efforts to secure comment from the Holy Ghost Headquarters have been unsuccessful.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using court records and the affidavit of probable cause.
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