Riverside pastor faces first-degree felony charge of raping child

New indictment of Dennis Bowling on Thursday raises number of sex-related counts from 76 to 84.

Dayton Daily News/March 30, 2007
By Lou Grieco

Dayton — A new indictment of Dennis Bowling, the Riverside pastor already charged with 76 sex-related counts, will take that number up to 84, including a first-degree felony.

In December, Bowling was charged with 11 counts of sexual battery. A January indictment added 65 counts, all but one a felony.

The new indictment, issued by a grand jury Thursday, will replace the January indictment, said Montgomery County Prosecutor's Office spokesman Greg Flannagan.

The 73 counts in the new indictment corrects some dates in the January indictment, which is critical because Ohio law takes age of victim into consideration for some offenses and penalties, Flannagan said.

The new indictment includes a count of rape of a child under the age of 13, the first time Bowling has been charged with a first-degree felony.

Bowling, 45, pastor of Kingdom Harvest Church, 2360 Valley Pike, for 19 years, remains in the Montgomery County Jail on $1 million bond.

Bowling was arrested after a group of women from the congregation told police he had sexually assaulted several female members of the church.

It's unclear how many victims are covered by the new indictment. Prosecutors and Riverside police said there were originally nine to 12 victims, but the number could grow. Flannagan said he did not know if investigators had found any new victims.