The pastor sent a Facebook message inviting the group to an “emergency meeting,” court records state. He also spoke in person with Gonzalez, telling him he would need to explain what he had done and ask for forgiveness.

About 16 people attended the meeting. The pastor later said in court testimony that there was “an understanding” that the meeting would be confidential, but it was “not directly stated,” according court records. He said that the church “was trying to deal with the human spiritual aspect” of what occurred.

The girl’s mother was invited, but decided not to attend. About 25 minutes into the two-hour meeting, the girl’s uncle began recording video of what was being said.

The video, taken a few feet away and directly in front of Gonzalez, showed him addressing the group in Spanish. He said he wished the girl’s mother was present so that everyone could hear him apologize to her, court records state.

“I’ll pretend she’s here,” he said, according to a court translation. “I ask (the mother) to forgive me, even though she’s not present here, but you are, as witnesses, because I have sinned.”

He went on to say that he had disrespected the pastor and asserted that he would face the consequences of his actions, according to court records.

“All right, Juan,” the girl’s uncle said. “But what did you do?”

Another person told Gonzalez that to be forgiven, he had to say what his mistake was.

As he began to describe what happened, the crowd pressed for more details.

“Confess everything,” he was told. “Say everything that happened.”

...continued

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