Georgia police have arrested a couple after discovering multiple disabled people locked in the basement of a church building in mid-January.
The Griffin Police Department wrote in a press release that officers had arrested Sophia Simm-Bankston, 56, on Thursday, a little less than a week after the arrest of her husband, Curtis Bankston, 55, on Jan. 14. Both have been charged with false imprisonment after an investigation found the two had held up to eight disabled people in the basement of a church in Griffin, Georgia, where Curtis Bankston claimed to serve as a pastor.
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After obtaining a search warrant on Jan. 13 for the One Step of Faith 2nd Chance church, Griffin police determined that the Bankstons had been leasing the building for about 14 months, operating the unlicensed facility under the appearance of a church, a press release from authorities revealed. It was also determined the couple were in control of the individuals’ finances, benefits, and medications. The investigators also found the individuals were denied medication and, in some cases, medical care.
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All eight of the individuals, five of which are wards of the state, were placed into proper housing and care by the Department of Human Services, according to the press release.
Dexter Wimbish, Curtis Bankston’s attorney, has denied the accusations against his client, saying nobody was “held against their will,” according to the Atlantic Journal-Constitution.
“There was no kidnapping,” Wimbish said. “There is no fraud here. This is simply a Christian man who was following his calling to help those who are in need. We cannot sit by and allow ministry to be attacked.”
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The Griffin Police Department has not yet responded to the Washington Examiner’s request for comment.
