Lexington church worker charged with rape

A Lexington man pleaded not guilty Friday to five counts of rape and one count of using a phone to solicit nude photos of a minor whom he met through a church.

Tony Sasnett, 39, is accused of having sex five times with a girl younger than 18, according to court records. Sasnett was arrested Thursday. Court records didn’t indicate when the alleged rapes occurred.

On the girl’s phone, police found electronic messages from Sasnett asking for nude photos, according to his arrest citation. Police also found sexually explicit messages sent by Sasnett.

Court records noted Sasnett was in a position of “special trust” with the victim.

He was in a “position of authority” at a local church through which he knew the girl, police spokeswoman Brenna Angel said.

The website for Greater Faith Apostolic Church says Sasnett organizes home Bible studies for the church, which is located at at 3416 Clays Mill Road. The United Pentacostal Church International Kentucky District said Tony Sasnett is on a missions team.

Sasnett’s attorney, Dan Carman, said at Sasnett’s arraignment Friday that the two “plan to vigorously dispute that he (Sasnett) was in a position of trust with the victim.” The victim, Carman said, was 16 or older.

Sasnett, who has lived in Lexington eight years, was arrested Thursday at 708 Werne Drive, the location of Allied Communications. His attorney said he was a contractor but didn’t specify Sasnett’s employer.

The prosecution argued against reducing Sasnett’s bond, saying he was a danger to the community and has three school-aged children at home. However, Fayette District Judge Joseph T. Bouvier reduced the bond to $10,000 bond from $17,500.

Sasnett will appear again in court on Feb. 23.

This story was originally published February 12, 2016 at 1:09 PM with the headline "Lexington church worker charged with rape."