Two ministers arrested in human trafficking operation in Tennessee

Pastor Jason Kennedy, a children's minister at Grace Baptist Church, and Zubin Parakh, creative pastor at Life House Church in Oak Ridge, were among the 32 men and women arrested by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) on Friday, May 20 during a Knoxville human trafficking operation.

According to TBI Newsroom, the two ministers were among those who responded to a Backpage.com ad where undercover agents posed as juvenile prostitutes in what they dubbed as "Operation Someone Like Me."

Grace Baptist Church immediately released an official statement to its members on their website to announce the termination of Kennedy as children's pastor following his arrest. They conveyed their sadness over what happened and clarified that the pastor was hired two and a half years ago with no criminal record or any issues that turned up from their background investigation.

"Our security system includes 78 security cameras, electronic check-in, background checks of employees and volunteers, and security officers during gatherings at the church," they assured the church members.

The church's senior pastor Ron Stewart told ABC10 that Kennedy was not just his co-worker but also his friend and that no one complained about him at church.

"Jason was a guy that talked so much about his wife and how much he loved her, and she talked about how she loved him and their three children. I mean, they were a great family," Stewart said.

TBI director Mark Gwyn shared that those arrested came from different professions, referring to them as "people we work and live with," as reported by WVLT.

Community Coalition Kate Trudell added that not many people understand that human trafficking is just another demand-driven crime.

"The demand comes from every single sector in our community," Trudell said. "Including those parts that we'd all like to believe are not part of the problem."

The three-day-operation of the TIB was in partnership with Knoxville Police Department Detectives and non-profit organizations (NGOs) Community Coalition Against Human Trafficking, End Slavery Tennessee, and Second Life Chattanooga. The NGOs assisted in identifying the potential victims of trafficking and offered services such as housing, counseling and addiction treatment to the victims.