Reward Posted for Runaway Vegas Pastor
A monetary reward has been offered for a Las Vegas pastor, who has been missing for the past year after sexually assaulting female teenagers in his congregation.
Otis Holland, 55, was arrested in Dec. 2010 and Jan. 2011 for allegedly sexually abusing girls as young as seven-years-old in his congregation since 2008.
Holland was bailed out by Bad Girl Bail Bonds nearly a year ago while he awaited his court date.
“The track has pretty much gone cold,” Christine Shea, bail bondswoman of Bad Girl Bail Bonds, told CNN.
Shea put down $30,000 to bail Holland out of jail.
“He’s very evil. I have guilt that I’ve helped to get him back out on the streets thinking that he was going to do the right thing and show up to his court appearances,” Shea added.
Private investigators and bounty hunters are now searching for Holland, who was the pastor of Vegas’ United Faith Church. Bad Girl Bail Bonds has now put up a $10,000 reward for Holland’s capture.
“Nearly every lead has been exhausted and there is still no sign of Otis Holland. He simply vanished almost a year ago,” Joe Bartels of Channel 8 News Now reported.
According to Channel 8 News Now, police believe Holland may have sought refuge in California. Media outlets suggest that the U.S. Marshal’s Office hopes the reward will provide the case with the necessary publicity to catch Holland.
Holland is five feet, 11 inches tall at 195 pounds, with brown eyes and black hair.
Vegas law enforcement is being criticized for not deeming Holland a high flight risk due to his alleged crimes.
“How could the judicial and law enforcement authorities think that an accused child molester would not be a high flight risk?” commented Bradley Chapline on the Las Vegas Sun Newswire’s website.
“This individual had a high-level of probable cause that he in fact did commit crimes against children. This should have been the end to this chapter of the story,” Chapline added.