Florida pastor accused of having sex with 14-year-old boy while hiding HIV diagnosis

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A “dope-smoking pedophile preacher” had sex with at least one underage boy and an adult man without telling them he was HIV-positive — and Florida officials said Tuesday they fear there might be additional victims.

Timothy Chaneyfield, 42, of St. James United American Free Will Baptist Church in Winter Haven, was arrested after he got off a plane at Orlando International Airport on July 29, the Polk County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.

The sheriff’s office alleged that Chaneyfield and a 14-year-old boy met on a dating app before Chaneyfield took their chats to Instagram, which led to three meetings for sex.

Tips from Instagram and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children led detectives to Chaneyfield, Sheriff Grady Judd told reporters Tuesday.

A 26-year-old man who also had sex with Chaneyfield was located by investigators and tested positive for HIV, Judd said.

“The 26-year-old didn’t know [Chaneyfield was HIV-positive] until we brought it to his attention, and the 14-year-old had no clue that he was having unprotected sex with an adult that was HIV-positive,” Judd said. “This guy’s nasty. He’s a menace to society, and he’s proven that.”

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