Mormon sex abuse scandal: How the church put paedophile Daniel Taylor in charge of Kaitaia youth

A shocking abuse of trust within the Mormon church is revealed in episode five of Heaven's Helpline. Illustration / Paul Slater

Podcast series Heaven’s Helpline reveals how credible reports of child sexual abuse and domestic violence vanish into a system of church leaders, lawyers and secret courts within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In episode five, Murray Jones reports on the case of Daniel Taylor and finds out how the church failed to protect the children of the Kaitaia congregation, despite multiple warnings.

In 2013, Daniel Taylor pleaded guilty to nine charges of sexual offending against boys.

He was sentenced to five years and seven months in prison.

The prominent Kaitaia businessman left a trail of victims in his wake, including one who had been under his care as a registered Child Youth and Family Services (CYFS - now Oranga Tamariki) caregiver.

In an impact statement, one boy said he had felt confused and disgusted by Taylor’s assaults and became withdrawn from friends and school. Another said Taylor abused him for years, and he often felt a sense of guilt.

A third boy said he stayed silent because he was afraid people would think he was gay. Yet another victim said he had considered hanging himself to escape Taylor, who had been his caregiver.

A judge said Taylor had a devious mind which he used to groom boys by gaining the trust of their families.

But how did he gain that trust? Taylor was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and a popular one at that. He had a large network, was often involved in church youth activities, and became a registered CYFS caregiver.

Concerns about multiple incidents of Taylor’s inappropriate behaviour towards boys were raised by local church members - but Mormon leaders said it was being handled and that Taylor was receiving in-house counselling for same-sex attraction.

But, after these concerns had been raised multiple times, church leaders chose to promote Taylor to ward seminary teacher - meaning he now had daily access to youth in the ward (congregation).

He began hosting sleepovers at his house, which was against church protocol, but, again, nobody from the local leadership stopped him.

Taylor’s predatory behaviour became the subject of jokes among the church’s youth. All the while, his molestation of boys continued.

So how was Taylor eventually stopped?

Heaven’s Helpline has investigated the LDS church’s abuse helpline and looked at cases where its use resulted in the protection of predators, even at the expense of sexual abuse victims’ safety and wellbeing.

In the case of Daniel Taylor, he was brought to justice by a call to a different kind of helpline. Hear the full story in episode five of Heaven’s Helpline.

We sought comment from the Church in response to the allegations discussed in this episode. The Church did not address the allegations directly, but in a statement said: “As followers of Jesus Christ, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints abhor abuse of any kind. As a church, we invest heavily on prevention and response; and will continue to do so.” The full statement from the church can be read here.

Heaven’s Helpline is available at iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. The series was made with the support of NZ On Air. For more on this series, go to nzherald.co.nz/heavenshelpline