# ‘Dope-smoking’ pastor accused of having sex with 14-year-old and adult while hiding HIV status

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/dope-smoking-pastor-accused-of-having-sex-with-14-year-old-and-adult-while-hiding-hiv-status/
- Published: 2026-08-08T13:44:31+00:00
- Updated: 2026-08-24T19:39:19+00:00
- Original publisher: Daily Mail (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16037341/pastor-dope-sexual-assault-child-florida.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490
- Topics: Americas, World

## Key points

- Florida pastor accused of assaulting a teen and adult while hiding HIV status
- Instagram tip led police to arrest Timothy Chaneyfield, 42
- Second victim, aged 26, has since tested HIV-positive

## Summary

A pastor in Florida has been arrested and accused of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old boy and an adult while knowingly withholding his HIV-positive status from them. Timothy Chaneyfield, 42, who preaches at St James United American Free Will Baptist Church in New Haven, was taken into custody after Polk County Sheriff's Office received a tip from Instagram about suspicious contact with a minor. Sheriff Grady Judd said the case highlights the role social media platforms can play in flagging predatory behaviour, and warned that Chaneyfield may have infected more victims than are currently known.

Officers allege Chaneyfield confessed to picking up the teenager on at least three occasions and taking him to his home in Eagle Lake for sex, without disclosing his HIV status; the boy has since received preventative treatment. A separate 26-year-old victim who had sexual contact with Chaneyfield has since tested HIV-positive. He faces charges including three counts of lewd battery against a child, failure to disclose his HIV status, travelling to meet a minor, computer-related offences and marijuana possession. Chaneyfield, who was ordained in 2020 and previously worked a decade at a middle school, was arrested in Orlando after officers tracked him from Baltimore; authorities are urging anyone who had sexual contact with him to seek medical testing.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.