Florida Missionary Indicted on Charges of Sexually Exploiting Minors in Haiti
The U.S. Department of Justice announced on November 12, 2026, that a federal grand jury in the Southern District of Florida returned an indictment charging Thomas Osbeck, 70, of Fort Myers, Florida, with engaging in, and attempting to engage in, illicit sexual conduct with minors in Haiti.
According to court documents, Osbeck routinely traveled from the United States to Haiti over the past three decades and sexually abused minors in that country. He was the founder of Jesus in Haiti Ministries and later Ignite Your Faith Ministries, through which he took in vulnerable children throughout the country.
The charges in the indictment are based on his sexual abuse of a Haitian boy between approximately 2004 and 2008, when the boy was approximately 8 through 12 years old, and his attempt to engage in a commercial sex act around 2019-2020 with another Haitian boy.
Osbeck was taken into custody in Haiti at the end of September 2026 after an investigation by Haitian authorities, and was returned to the United States on October 14, where he was arrested by U.S. law enforcement upon landing at Miami International Airport. He has remained in custody since that time. Investigators believe Osbeck may have victimized additional children and encourage anyone with information to contact the FBI.
Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department's Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Yara Lorenzo Klukas for the Southern District of Florida, and Special Agent in Charge Brett D. Skiles of the FBI Miami Field Office made the announcement. FBI Miami is investigating the case. Trial Attorney Jessica L. Urban of the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Abbie D. Waxman for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case, No. 26-cr-20468, which was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood. An indictment is merely an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. (Source: U.S. Department of Justice)
Source: U.S. Department of Justice
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于华盛顿特区的美国司法部总部大楼（联邦固定图库）。 / Photo: U.S. Department of Justice headquarters building in Washington, D.C. (federal asset library).
