Philadelphia pastor Bryan Jackson has pleaded guilty to federal child sexual exploitation charges after prosecutors said he helped deceive a child into producing child sexual abuse material.
Jackson, 42, entered his plea before U.S. District Judge Joel H. Slomsky on November 4. His sentencing is scheduled for February 19, 2027. He faces a maximum possible sentence of 80 years in prison; the court has yet to determine his sentence.
Jackson had served as a pastor at Garden of Prayer Church of God in Christ in North Philadelphia. He was arrested in June alongside Isaiah Banks, 30, a former senior pastor of Second Pilgrim Baptist Church.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Jackson pleaded guilty to conspiracy to manufacture child pornography, manufacture and attempted manufacture of child pornography, and receipt of child pornography.
Prosecutors said Jackson and a co-conspirator used a false online identity, posing as an older girl, to obtain abuse material from a minor and share it with each other. Jackson also knowingly received abuse material involving a second minor between November 2025 and May 2026.
The investigation began in April after a witness discovered messages on a child's phone allegedly showing Banks offering food or money in exchange for explicit videos. The witness alerted a therapist, who reported the matter to the Philadelphia Department of Human Services. Police subsequently investigated the communications and the connection between the two men.
Federal authorities announced charges against both men in June. The allegations against Banks remain separate from Jackson's guilty plea, and Banks is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
When local charges were announced, Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner condemned the alleged abuse of the trust placed in clergy and emphasised the needs of those harmed.
"The survivors deserve compassion, support, and justice," Krasner said.
The federal investigation was conducted by the Philadelphia Police Department's Special Victims Unit and Homeland Security Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Branwen McNabb O'Donnell is prosecuting the case, which was brought through Project Safe Childhood, a federal initiative addressing child sexual exploitation.
