GREENSBORO, N.C. — Matt Queen, lead pastor of Friendly Avenue Baptist Church in Greensboro, has been placed on administrative leave while a federal investigation continues into his alleged involvement in obstructing justice in a sexual misconduct case that took place during Queen’s time at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (SWBTS) in Fort Worth, Texas.

Leaders at Friendly Avenue Baptist Church announced the move to church members following the worship service on Sunday, May 26. The church also shared a statement about the move with the Biblical Recorder.

“Dr. Queen has committed to resolve this matter responsibly, and we support his full cooperation with the authorities,” the statement said in part. “To this end, Dr. Queen is on administrative leave from his pastoral responsibilities. He will step away to devote his attention to his family and to assist authorities in their inquiry.”

The statement also said that “The actions alleged in the indictment oppose the moral values of Friendly Avenue Baptist Church, and we condemn all forms of sexual abuse.”

On Tuesday, May 21, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York charged Queen with one count of falsifying records in notes he provided to the FBI as part of a federal investigation related to a potential cover-up of an alleged sexual misconduct incident. The timeline of the investigation dates back to late 2022 and early 2023 when Queen served as interim provost at SWBTS.

“As alleged, Matthew Queen attempted to interfere with a federal grand jury investigation by creating false notes in an attempt to corroborate his own lies,” U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a press release issued by the Department of Justice announcing the charges against Queen. “The criminal obstruction charge announced today should exemplify the seriousness of attempts by any individual to manipulate or interfere with a federal investigation.”

If convicted, Queen faces a maximum of 20 years in prison.

Queen has pleaded not guilty to the charge and issued a statement through his attorney on Wednesday, May 22, maintaining his innocence. 

“I fully cooperated with this investigation and have pleaded not guilty to the charge against me,” Queen’s statement said. “As a Christian, a (former) seminary professor, and now a pastor, my integrity is everything to me and I will cling to that integrity and seek to be vindicated by God and man. Until that day, I do not intend to comment or discuss this matter further. I covet your prayers for me and my family. Thank you.”

Queen, 49, a North Carolina native, was named pastor of Friendly Avenue Baptist Church in February of this year. He previously served on staff at the church before joining the faculty at Southwestern as an evangelism professor in 2010.

Following is the complete text of the church’s announcement:

Friendly Avenue Baptist Church issues the following statement in response to the announcement by the Department of Justice of the indictment of Dr. Matt Queen.

“Our church leaders and staff were first informed of a falsification of records charge against our Lead Pastor, Dr. Matt Queen, in recent days. The actions alleged in the indictment oppose the moral values of Friendly Avenue Baptist Church, and we condemn all forms of sexual abuse. Dr. Queen has committed to resolve this matter responsibly, and we support his full cooperation with the authorities. To this end, Dr. Queen is on administrative leave from his pastoral responsibilities. He will step away to devote his attention to his family and to assist authorities in their inquiry. As Dr. Queen steps away, we will secure other speakers to fill the pulpit on Sundays. In parallel, the church will continue to monitor events closely. We respectfully request further inquiries be directed to [email protected].”