WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah — A West Valley City man has been arrested on allegations that he sexually abused minors while serving an overseas church mission overseas for several years.
William James Purdy, 28, was indicted on July 16 and arrested Thursday.
According to court documents, Purdy traveled to Tonga in 2017 for his mission with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. While there, prosecutors say he sexually abused multiple minor boys.
Purdy returned to Tonga in late 2019 to teach at a school in the area, but allegedly groomed and sexually abused numerous male students, even living with some of the victims and providing them with gifts and money for the abuse.
In 2022, Purdy was arrested by Tongan police when an 8-year-old boy disclosed that he had been sexually assaulted during tutoring sessions. Detectives said Purdy continued to abuse children after he was released.
Purdy fled Tonga prior to his March 2023 trial by using an assumed identity and returning to Utah.
Prosecutors believe they have identified 14 victims in the case.
“The defendant in this case chose to travel abroad under the guise of good intentions and then sexually exploited and abused children who had been trusted to his care,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “When foreign authorities sought to hold him accountable, he fled back to the United States. The United States will not export child exploitation. The Justice Department is committed to securing justice for children exploited overseas when these heinous acts are committed by Americans.”
