New abuse charges filed against fmr. Fla. church summer camp volunteer

Additional criminal charges and a civil lawsuit have been filed against a former Florida church summer camp volunteer who, last year, pleaded guilty to abusing four boys.

Gabriel Hemenez, a former member of the Gainesville-based Ignite Life Center who volunteered at the summer camp, had three new charges filed in March and a civil lawsuit earlier this month.

Hemenez, who is serving a five-year prison sentence, might soon face three counts of lewd and lascivious molestation by an offender 18 years old or older, according to WUFT.

The case by the Gainesville Police Department remains open, reported WUFT, with an affidavit explaining that a victim alleged being molested by Hemenez on three occasions at night during the church summer program in July 2021.

In 2023, Hemenez was arrested for allegedly inappropriately touching three minors and an adult two years earlier during a month-long overnight camp called Youth Internship.

Hemenez was charged with two counts of lewd or lascivious molestation and one count of attempted sexual battery of a minor. He confessed to those crimes, according to News4Jax.

In March 2024, Hemenez pled guilty to two counts of felony lewd and lascivious conduct with two boys, avoiding trial and receiving a five-year prison sentence, along with eight years’ probation and a lifetime designation as a registered sex offender.

Hemenez isn't the only person tied to Ignite Life to be arrested in relation to alleged abuse at youth programs, as two other volunteers were also arrested last year.

The Alachua Chronicle reported in March 2024 that Christian David Vargas was arrested in July 2023 and Noel Cruz was taken into custody in February of last year.

Vargas and Cruz were both charged with lewd or lascivious battery on a victim younger than 16, while Vargas was also charged with lewd or lascivious conduct by an adult.

For its part, Ignite Life has weathered multiple lawsuits alleging that it failed to properly respond to the abuse, including three lawsuits that were filed in March 2024 against them and the Florida Multicultural District Council of the Assemblies of God, which the church belongs to.

Last October, those three suits were settled through mediation, with the terms of the agreement being kept confidential.