BREAKING: Republican Pastor Sex Abuse Allegations Span Decades
Republican Les Hughey spent decades as a trusted religious leader in Arizona and California. He ran youth groups. He founded a church. He built a following.
Behind that, according to a police investigation, was a pattern of alleged abuse spanning more than 40 years and multiple states.
Who He Is
Hughey worked as a youth pastor at Scottsdale Bible Church in the 1980s and 1990s before founding Highlands Church, also in Scottsdale. He resigned from Highlands in 2018 after allegations against him became public.
Bob Wade, another former Scottsdale Bible pastor, is also named in the police report in connection with an allegation of indecent exposure. Wade took over as lead pastor at Highlands Church after Hughey resigned and later served on staff at the Highlands Institute, a non-accredited theological program in Scottsdale.
What the Investigation Found
The Scottsdale Police Department forwarded a 100-page report to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office detailing a dozen allegations of sexual abuse, inappropriate touching, and indecent exposure against Hughey. The investigation drew on interviews with eight victims, most of whom were between 15 and 19 years old at the time of the alleged incidents, along with current and former church members and leaders.
The allegations trace back to the 1970s, when Hughey worked at a church in Modesto, California. The Modesto Bee first reported in 2018 that at least seven women said Hughey engaged in inappropriate conduct with them as teenagers during that period. According to that reporting, the church became aware of the allegations at the time and, rather than addressing them, moved Hughey out of the area. He later came to Scottsdale.
Scottsdale Police Sgt. Ben Hoster said the department’s investigation began roughly a year before the report was completed. Jurisdiction is complicated by the fact that none of the alleged incidents took place in Scottsdale. They occurred in Mexico, California, and northern Arizona, during church trips.
What Church Leadership Knew
The report raises real questions about oversight. Kory Schuknecht, a pastor with Scottsdale Bible Church since 1976, told police he had no knowledge of Hughey’s conduct and first learned of the allegations from the Modesto Bee’s reporting.
But the police report also includes an account from one alleged victim who said that after an incident at Hughey’s home, she told her mother, who was distraught and told her never to let it happen again. That victim said her father was a church elder and that her mother informed elders about the incident at the time.
Whether that information moved further up the chain, and what if anything was done with it, remains unclear.
What Happened Next
Both Scottsdale Bible Church and Highlands Church hired outside firms to investigate after the allegations became public. Scottsdale Bible also held a meeting for church members with police so that any victims or witnesses could learn how to file reports.
As of the police report’s forwarding to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, it was up to that office to decide whether to file charges. Given that none of the alleged conduct occurred within Scottsdale city limits, jurisdiction over any potential prosecution remained an open question.
The Bottom Line
A pastor who built decades of trust across two states and multiple congregations was the subject of a formal police investigation involving eight victims and a dozen distinct allegations. A previous employer allegedly knew and relocated him rather than addressing it. He continued in ministry for decades afterward.
The full police report was forwarded to prosecutors. What comes of it is a matter of public record the community has a right to follow.