Illinois Lutheran pastor arrested on child pornography charges

Michael Mohr, the president of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod’s Central Illinois District, was charged in a St. Louis federal court on Thursday with one count of producing child pornography. Federal agents arrested Mohr Wednesday, according to a statement emailed from the office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri to WORLD. He is considered legally innocent until proven guilty.

FBI St. Louis investigated the case with assistance from FBI Springfield and several police departments. Authorities found videos of three juveniles recorded in the bathroom during a search of Mohr's Springfield, Ill., home, according to the statement. They also found hidden cameras disguised as a wall clock and Bluetooth speaker in another residence used by Mohr, according to the statement.

How did the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod respond to Mohr's arrest? No words could express the denomination's sorrow and shame, its president, Rev. Matthew Harrison, wrote in a Wednesday letter. It would cooperate with any requests received from law enforcement, he said.

Mohr was elected to serve as president of the denomination’s Central Illinois District in 2022 and reelected in July 2025. Mohr also serves on the Board of Regents for Concordia Seminary in St. Louis. He received his Master of Divinity degree from the seminary in 1998, according to Ad Crucem News.

Dig deeper: Read Christina Grube’s report on Bethel Church’s admission of error in handling sexual harassment and false prophecy allegations.