Former Cloverdale church elder pleads guilty to sex assault
Brian Batke is second man linked to evangelical fellowship to be convicted in recent months
Another former member of an evangelical church in Surrey, B.C., has been convicted of sexual assault.
Brian David Batke pleaded guilty to one charge of sexual assault during a court appearance on Feb. 14, according to the B.C. Prosecution Service. Two other charges related to offences against the same victim have been stayed.
Batke, who is in his 70s, was associated with the Cloverdale Christian Fellowship Church at the time of the assault in 2007. He was a church elder until 2005, and then served as a director of the Cloverdale Christian Fellowship Society between 2005 and 2007.
Samuel Emerson, a pastor at the same church, was found guilty of sexual assault in November. His wife was found not guilty of four sex-related offences after the same trial.
Following Batke's guilty plea, Crown and defence made a joint submission for him to serve a 12-month conditional sentence followed by 12 months of probation. He has also been ordered to submit a DNA sample and register as a sex offender for 20 years.