Child porn suspect was pastor of Geneva-area church
A man accused of possessing and disseminating child pornography worked at a Geneva-area church from 2016 until March.
Rejoice Lutheran Church hired the Rev. Michael C. Willis to lead its youth ministry in 2016, according to the church's Facebook page.
Willis was ordained as a pastor in 2022, according to records on the website of the Metropolitan Chicago Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, to which Rejoice belongs.
On Wednesday, a synod official said Willis was put on leave in April when the synod learned of the investigation, and that Willis resigned from Rejoice in early June.
Willis was arrested Tuesday morning and was released on $5,000 bond Tuesday afternoon.
The charges allege he possessed and shared illicit images and videos of girls between Nov. 28, 2022, and April 10, 2023.
Willis, 44, lives in Campton Hills.
Rejoice was organized in 1995. It moved into a permanent home in 1999 in unincorporated Geneva. It sold the building in March 2023. Since then, the congregation has met in various places in Geneva, including Fox Valley Presbyterian Church, a nightclub and a bar.
A Rejoice employee who replied to a request for comment said that Willis was not involved in youth ministries.
Tom Andersen, general manager and human resources director for the synod, declined to say whether Willis had worked for any other churches in the synod.
Before coming to Geneva, Willis had worked at Redeemer Church in Park Ridge for 12 years, according to a Redeemer website.