In a shocking turn of events, it has come to light that Joel Osteen’s megachurch in Lakewood, Texas, was the subject of a Child Protective Services probe back in 2010.
The investigation was initiated after a church volunteer was accused of engaging in inappropriate s**ual conduct with a special needs child at the facility.
According to court documents obtained by RadarOnline.com, the accused volunteer, Alvaro Daniel Guzman, was part of the special needs children’s ministry at Lakewood, known as the Champions Club.
On February 13, 2010, another volunteer allegedly witnessed Guzman behaving inappropriately towards the child assigned to him.
The concerned individual promptly reported the incident to her superiors, who advised her to contact Child Protective Services and provide them with the details of what she had witnessed.
Following the report, CPS launched an investigation into the matter.
On February 17, Lakewood staff met with Guzman and informed him that he would no longer be allowed to serve as a volunteer due to the allegation of inappropriate behavior.
Subsequently, on February 25, Houston Police detectives interviewed Lakewood staff members regarding the alleged incident.
On May 5, 2011, the Harris County District Court issued an arrest warrant for Guzman, charging him with indecency towards a child on February 13, 2010.
He was arrested and later released on $10,000 bail.
However, by July 21, a grand jury did not find enough evidence to indict him, resulting in his release.
But the legal battle did not end there.
In February 2012, Guzman filed a $10 million lawsuit against Lakewood, alleging negligence on the part of the church.
He claimed that they failed to properly investigate the accusations made against him and neglected to secure video footage from surveillance cameras that could have exonerated him from the baseless claims.
Guzman stated that as a result, he suffered lost wages, damage to his reputation, and experienced significant anxiety, pain, and illness.
Furthermore, Guzman’s lawsuit mentioned that similar events had supposedly occurred at Lakewood in the past, although he did not provide any evidence to support this claim.
When asked to provide details of any previous incidents resembling the one involving Guzman, the church objected, citing vagueness and overbreadth in the request.
Similarly, when questioned about any other child abuse allegations within the church’s premises, Lakewood objected, stating that the question lacked specificity and was unclear.
They vehemently denied any such occurrences.
Finally, on December 14, 2012, a judge ruled in favor of Lakewood, granting a summary judgment as no evidence was presented by Guzman to substantiate his claims.
The case reached its conclusion, leaving the church legally cleared of any wrongdoing.
