A pastor of a Cottage Grove church has been arrested on suspicion of possessing child pornography.
William Leonard Helker, 47, was arrested by Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension agents on Wednesday. Helker is an associate pastor of All Saints Lutheran Church in Cottage Grove, according to the ELCA church’s website.
He was arrested at his home in Pine City, Minn., by the Bureau’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. The officers booked him into the Pine County Jail.
The agents executed search warrants at Helker’s home and at the church, with help from Homeland Security Investigations, which is part of the federal Department of Homeland Security. Deputies of the Pine County sheriff’s office also helped with the search warrants.
According to a news release, charges in the case are pending.