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Articles Tagged with Pastor

Published on: February 23, 2026

Pastor Accused of Sexually Abusing Minor at Miami Church. How Leesfield & Partners has Represented Victims and Survivors for 50 Years.

A pastor at a church in Northwest Miami-Dade County is facing charges after police say he sexually abused a 15-year-old member of the congregation.

Elco Vallier, 50, of Loxahatchee, Florida, was charged with lewd and lascivious molestation and lewd and lascivious conduct with a minor.

At around 8:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 9, the minor told police that Vallier sexually assaulted her on several occasions at the church, according to a Feb. 18 press release from the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office. The girl’s mother told deputies that she found “inappropriate text messages” on her daughter’s phone that she alleges are from Vallier.

Published on: May 14, 2025

Seminole County Pastor Accused of Sexually Abusing Children. How Leesfield & Partners has Represented Victims and Survivors for Nearly Five Decades in Florida.

By Leesfield & Partners

Police in Sanford, Florida, are asking anyone with information on a local pastor who they believe has sexually abused multiple children in his congregation.

Yersson David Solarte Basto, 33, was charged with sexual assault on a victim under 18 years old and lewd and lascivious molestation of a victim under 16, according to reporting from The Miami Herald.

Solarte was a pastor at IPUL Pentecostal Church in Sanford, or Iglesia Pentecostal Unida Latinoamericana Orlando Norte, during the alleged abuse. The crimes were reported to police “after the most recent incident,” according to local media. The victim said she was abused by Solarte on multiple occasions before he “expressed his love for her” and she “refused his advances.” After that, the girl told police he “tried making her jealous” by abusing her sister.