GREENSBORO, N.C. — A North Carolina pastor has resigned from his position after pleading guilty to the falsification of documents.
A federal prosecutor charged Matthew Queen with falsification of documents stemming from an investigation in Texas. He was the lead pastor at Friendly Avenue Baptist Church in Greensboro.
Court records show he pleaded guilty to the charge on Oct. 16.
Investigators said Queen gave falsified notes as part of a conspiracy to destroy evidence in a sexual misconduct case in Texas.
Friendly Avenue Baptist Church released this statement in response to Queen's guilty plea on Nov. 8:
Dr. Matthew Queen is stepping down from his role as Lead Pastor at Friendly Avenue Baptist Church, effective immediately. While this has been a challenging season, we continue to trust in God’s sovereignty and remain focused on our mission. As we move forward, we encourage our congregation and the wider community to stay focused on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.
Timeline
An employee received a report in November 2022 that a current student committed sexual abuse — this is all tied to an investigation from the month prior in October, where a grand jury subpoena was issued to a seminary affiliated with the denomination in connection to allegations of sexual abuse and misconduct associated with a national religious institution in Texas, according to the Department of Justice.
In January 2023, an employee created a document detailing a sexual abuse allegation that happened in November 2022, including the Seminary's failure to take action regarding the allegation at that time, according to court documents.
On January 26, 2023, investigators said the employee met with Queen, the interim Provost and professor at the Seminary, and an executive staff member. During that meeting, and in Queen’s presence, the executive staff member told the employee to destroy the document detailing the sexual allegations.
In May 2023, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI said they interviewed Queen in Texas regarding the Jan. 26, 2023, meeting with the executive staff member and the employee. During that interview, Queen falsely stated that he had not heard the executive staff member tell the employee to destroy the document.
In June 2023, Queen gave the U.S. Attorney’s Office a copy of his notes, according to the DOJ.
On June 20, 2023, Queen met again with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI in New York and produced the original notebook containing his notes. During his second interview, the DOJ said Queen initially falsely stated that he had written the notes simultaneously with the Jan. 26, 2023 meeting. Still, then, during the same meeting, Queen falsely stated that he instead had written the notes months later, in April 2023. In truth and fact, Queen had written the notes following his initial May 2023 interview with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI.
On June 21, 2023, Queen testified under oath that he had heard the executive staff member tell the employee to make the document “go away.”
WFMY News 2 obtained a statement that Queen shared with his church:
In 2022 the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) initiated an investigation of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) over publicly reported cases of sexual abuse within the denomination. The DOJ investigation included interviews with employees of numerous SBC entities, including the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Ft. Worth, Texas, where I was employed as a professor, former associate dean, and former interim provost from 2010 until I resigned my employment on February 29, 2024, in order to return to my home state of North Carolina to pastor again. During my employment at the seminary, I was present during a conversation of interest to investigators and was interviewed about my recollection of that conversation. Prosecutors believe I misrepresented that conversation, and my notes about my recollection of that conversation, during my interview with them and indicted me for “obstruction of justice.” I fully cooperated with this investigation and have pleaded not guilty to the charge against me. As a Christian, a (former) seminary professor, and now a pastor, my integrity is everything to me and I will cling to that integrity and seek to be vindicated by God and man. Until that day, I do not intend to comment or discuss this matter further. I covet your prayers for me and my family. Thank you.
Below is a statement from Queen's Attorney:
In response to the accusation against Dr. Matthew Queen. Dr. Queen was unaware of the allegation made against the student in November 2022 until January 24, 2023, after the arrest of the student by the Burleson Police Department earlier that day. The meeting alleged in the accusation occurred on January 26, 2023. The meeting was scheduled to discuss a matter not having to do with the document that Employee 1 created. Dr. Queen has never seen the contents of the document and became aware of the general nature of the contents of the letter, i.e., about the rape accusation, at a later time. He was unaware that the letter contained allegations relating to the failure of the Seminary to take action in November 2022 until the filing of the charges against him. The notes prepared by Dr. Queen cited in the accusation were true to his best recollection and did not contain false information. Dr. Queen testified truthfully before the Grand Jury.
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