Terry Lewayne Murphree, 39, an Alabama youth preacher who allegedly threatened to murder himself and his ex-wife when the 13-year-old girl he is accused of raping refused to send him nude images, has been arrested and charged with 17 counts of first-degree rape and attempted sodomy.
According to jail and court records acquired by Law&Crime, Murphree, a Blountsville resident, is accused of raping the teen many times. He is charged with many offenses, including a clergy person having sexual intercourse with a minor, human trafficking, electronic solicitation of a child, travel to meet a kid for sex and sexual assault.
The church where Murphree worked as a youth minister was not named in court papers, and Law&Crime’s persistent demands to identify it were not confirmed on Thursday.
Murphree did not have an attorney, according to court documents. Pamela Casey and Scott Gilliland, district attorneys in Blount County, are prosecuting him.
According to a criminal complaint received by Law&Crime, Murphree began hitting the teen about March 30 and continued until the second or third week of June. According to police, Murphree raped or sexually assaulted her at least seven times and up to fifteen times.
The human trafficking complaint stems particularly from an allegation that Murphree threatened to “kill himself and his wife if the victim of age 13 does not send him nude photographs and videos of herself,” according to the papers.
His wife filed for divorce last month, according to Lawandcrime.
The alleged attacks occurred both in the church and at the girl’s home.
Prosecutors believe the youth minister spoke with the victim through Snapchat text messages. This was how they “arranged meetings,” according to authorities.
