ALEA Investigating After Pastor at Hamilton Ministry Reportedly Admits to Touching Minors

State police in Alabama have launched an investigation after a pastor at a ministry in Marion County reportedly admitted to sexually touching children on at least two occasions.

Yesterday, the Ramp ministry in Hamilton issued a statement and said one of their pastors, Samuel Bentley, was accused last week of inappropriate sexual contact with a minor several years ago.

After the victim came forward, Ramp said its leadership spoke with Bradley, and "during that conversation, he admitted the allegation was true," according to their statement.

Samuel Bradley was fired, Ramp notified its Board of Directors, and they reported the matter to the police, they said.

"A few days later, Samuel disclosed a second instance involving another minor, which was also reported to the appropriate authorities," they wrote.

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Now, the matter is under investigation by the State Bureau of Investigation, police in Hamilton said.

In a statement, Hamilton PD said they are aware of Ramp's post and that the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency's SBI has launched an investigation that does not include the local police at this time.

Hamilton is a city of about 7,000 people and is the county seat of Marion County, about 80 miles northwest of Tuscaloosa.

Ramp said it is committed to working with the victims of this abuse and is devastated that they platformed Samuel Bradley, but does not believe these incidents happened on their church campus or in connection to the ministry.

They have cancelled their events this week and asked for privacy, especially for the victims of the alleged abuse, who have asked to remain anonymous.

For more exclusive coverage of crime and courts in West Alabama, stay connected to the Tuscaloosa Thread.