WAFB Channel 9, Baton Rouge, LA |Church music director arrested on sex charges

Church music director arrested on sex charges

By Jim Shannon

ST. GABRIEL, LA (WAFB) - The music director of a church in St. Gabriel faces up to 800 years in prison on sex charges. Lawrence Mercadel was booked into Iberville Parish Prison Monday night after turning himself in.

St. Gabriel police say the 50-year-old man was caught in the act with a 16-year-old girl. They also say Mercadel has ties to a church in Baton Rouge. Lawrence Mercadel is charged with 50 counts of carnal knowledge of a juvenile. He's also charged with 20 counts of aggravated crimes against nature. The pastor of New Jerusalem Baptist Church in St. Gabriel, where Mercadel is the music director, was not available to comment on the arrest.

Police say the alleged incidents went on from December of 2007 to this past June. "It expanded. We confiscated her cell phone. She came in and gave officers a video statement of the relationship that's been going on about six months," says Chief Kevin Ambeau. St. Gabriel police say the victim in this case is a member of the New Jerusalem Baptist Church.

Mercadel had a Baton Rouge address listed on his arrest warrant, and police say he also had connections to the Promise Land Church in North Baton Rouge. "This type of stuff, you know, he need to be in jail, you know. People put their faith in the spiritual beliefs and they turn around and do something like this here. It's a devastating blow to the community this size or anywhere else," the chief says.

According to police documents, Mercadel is also on probation for a charge out of Alabama. He was accused of impersonating a peace officer there. His probation is scheduled to run through 2012. On the 50 counts of felony carnal knowledge, Mercadel faces up to ten years in prison on each charge. On the crimes against nature charges, he faces three to 15 years on each of the 20 charges there.