The married former leader of a gay conversion ministry was caught in a police sting while trying to arrange s3x with a 14-year-old boy, according to police. Alan Chambers, a 54-year-old father of two, allegedly sent s3xually explicit text messages and attempted to arrange a meetup over Snapchat and Telegram with an undercover officer posing as a teenage boy, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office in Florida.
“Our detectives stopped a predator before he had the chance to harm a child,” the sheriff’s office said. Chambers was arrested on May 18 and charged with trying to meet up with a minor for s3x.
In the messages exchanged between February and May, Chambers allegedly sent a photo showing a man’s torso and genitals, as well as another image of his face, according to an affidavit obtained by WESH. He repeatedly said he wanted to meet up with the teen for s3x and even asked him if he could take an Uber to his work office.
Chambers messaged the boy about “forbidden love” and that he wanted the boy “so much,” according to the arrest document. He also showed concern about their age difference and being found out. “Is it bad that I want to make love to someone who is 14?” he messaged the undercover agent, Fox 35 Orlando reported.
Investigators also uncovered other messages soliciting s3x from male prostitutes, according to the affidavit. Chambers was arrested during a traffic stop on May 18. When asked whether he communicated with any children, Chambers told police he communicated with one person on Snapchat who was 14. He also revealed he currently lives with his wife and two children in Winter Park, Florida.
Chambers served as president of Exodus International, a now-shuttered Orlando-based ministry that claimed it could “cure” homosexuality, from 2001 to 2013. However, he shut it down in 2013, apologizing to the LGBTQ community “for years of undue suffering and judgment at the hands of the organization and the church as a whole.”
He is charged with solicitation of a minor via computer, transmission of material harmful to minors, and unlawful use of a two-way communication device. He was released on a $15,000 bond and is prohibited from having any contact with individuals under the age of 18. Chambers was also ordered not to use social media and is allowed to go online only for work.