A Powder Springs man who was the pastor of a church and a school bus driver has been charged with child molestation.
Rodney Colston, 64, was arrested March 21 on one count of child molestation, online jail records show. Colston was formerly the pastor of Temple Baptist Church of West Cobb and worked for the Cobb County School District primarily as a bus driver for more than 10 years, according to public records.
The investigation into Colston began in February when another bus driver reported that Colston had said something related to molesting two girls, according to an arrest warrant obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Investigators identified those two victims, who are now adults, along with a third victim who is still a minor.
The sexual abuse disclosed by the two older victims is beyond the statute of limitations, but the third victim, who is now 14, told investigators that Colston molested her about seven years ago, “when she was in first or second grade,” the warrant said. Details that she shared about the incident echoed some of the details shared by the older victims.
According to the warrant, police interviewed Colston over the phone and he admitted to molesting one of the older victims while she was asleep. The 14-year-old also told investigators about several instances in which she would wake up to see Colston in her doorway staring at her.
Colston denied all other accusations of sexual abuse during the phone call, the warrant said. Police originally scheduled an in-person interview with him, but he later declined it after hiring a lawyer.
Colston was arrested on one count of child molestation and released the following day on $25,000 bond, jail records show.
According to the Temple Baptist Church’s Facebook page, Colston stepped down from his position as pastor late last year after his wife’s death. The church’s filing history with the Georgia Secretary of State’s office shows he had been pastor there for more than 20 years.
Public records also show that Colston has been employed by the Cobb school district as a bus driver since 2010. In 2020, the most recent year payroll data is available, Colston earned a little more than $32,000 as a bus driver.
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