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Youth minister faces charges in Guilford County
wire reports
October 25, 2010
3 MIN READ TIME

Youth minister faces charges in Guilford County

Youth minister faces charges in Guilford County
wire reports
October 25, 2010

A youth minister at an

Autryville church is facing charges in Guilford County.

Thomas L. Elliot, 40, of

Roseboro, was arrested for soliciting a minor over the Internet for a sexual

act and attempted indecent liberties with a minor.

The arrest Thursday (Oct.

21) was part of an undercover Internet sting by Guilford County Sheriff’s Office.

According to an official with the sheriff’s office, Elliot had been under

surveillance since September.

Elliot is a part-time youth

minister at Autryville Baptist Church.

Officers said Elliot

initiated chats with officers online. Thursday Elliot arranged to meet what he

thought was a 14-year-old girl on Friday “for the purpose of a sexual act,” the

official said.

The minister drove two and a half hours from Roseboro to

Greensboro for the meeting.

“We set up to meet at a

movie theater,” Det. Tommy Sluder Sluder said. However, after Elliott got lost,

detectives changed the location of the meeting to an electronics store, where

he was promptly arrested.

“He was shocked,” said

Sluder of Elliott’s reaction when he opened his car door to see a swarm of

detectives instead of the girl._ь

Elliot’s former employer at Clinton radio

station said news of the arrest was surprising.

Pat Dixon at WCLN Funtime

Oldies in Clinton, said the news of his arrest came as a shock.

“It is out of character for

him to do something like this,” Dixon said Friday in a Sampson Independent

article. “I have nothing but good things to say about him. He is one of the

finest people that I have ever met.”_ÑŒ

Dixon said Elliott, who has a wife and

child, worked at the station for close to six years as on-air talent doing an

afternoon radio show, where Elliott was better known as “The Fly.” _ÑŒ

Two

years ago, Elliott left his job for the ministry “because he really loved doing

it and it was something he always wanted to do,” Dixon said.

“I know he also worked

another job in Fayetteville to supplement his income. I get people who still

come up to me and ask what happened to his show; he was very popular here. To

hear of him being arrested, is just a real shock to me.”_ÑŒ

Elliott is being held

on a $25,000 bond at Guilford County Jail. His first court appearance was

Friday at 2 p.m.

Other reports say Elliot

also was an announcer for a local football team. Elliot also was a volunteer

youth minister at Evergreen Baptist Church before being hired at Autryville Baptist.