Statement on the Kidnapping of Noah Trout

STATEMENT OF PASTOR MIKE MITCHENER AND
RIVERVIEW BAPTIST CHURCH

RE: KIDNAPPING FROM CHURCH CAMPUS

(Issued on May 3, 2021)

The last twenty-four hours have been a nightmare for our entire church family. It is now that we can rejoice that the child that was kidnapped from our campus yesterday has been safely returned to his parents. We commend law enforcement for their excellent work, and we praise God for answering our prayers.

Riverview Baptist Church values the safety and protection of every child. As a matter of policy, we fully cooperated with law enforcement. We are immediately examining ways to make our campus and facilities even more safe and secure for families wishing to come worship with us. We hope that this criminal act on our campus allows other churches to evaluate their own childcare safety procedures.

We believe that transparency, child safety, and accountability are essential for successful ministry, and we are fully committed to ministering to your children in a safe and responsible manner. As we do not want to interfere with the on-going work of law enforcement in this matter, this will be our only public statement at this time.