Former pastor pleads guilty after admitting to hiding camera in church bathroom

By Joseph Buczek

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    LIVINGSTON COUNTY, Michigan (WWJ) — A former pastor at a Livingston County church has pleaded guilty to 15 charges after he admitted to placing a hidden camera in a unisex bathroom at the church.

William Johnson, 38, pleaded guilty on April 14 to one count of child sexually abusive activity, seven counts of using a computer to commit a crime, four counts of surveilling an unclothed person, two counts of possessing child sexually abusive material and one count of tampering with evidence.

In September 2024, leaders from the 2|42 Community Church in Brighton alerted the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office after church staff found a video recording device in a church bathroom. Johnson, who was the church’s worship pastor director, admitted to church leaders in September 2024 that he placed the camera in the bathroom intending to record people without their knowledge. He was fired from his position with the church.

Johnson, who worked with the church for five years, was later arrested by the sheriff’s office at his home in Howell.

When he was interviewed by detectives, Johnson admitted to hiding a camera in a church bathroom periodically for the last two years and targeting specific people who were known to use that bathroom. Deputies say the bathroom was used by church staff and volunteers and was not typically accessible to the public.

Johnson will be sentenced on May 22.

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