NEW YORK CITY — Former seminary professor and North Carolina pastor Matt Queen entered a guilty plea in U.S. District Court in southern New York on Wednesday (Oct. 16). Queen, 49, is pleading guilty to a charge of falsifying documents, according to court records.

In a May statement, FBI Assistant Director in Charge James Smith said, “Matthew Queen, an interim Provost, allegedly failed to inform the FBI of a conspiracy to destroy evidence related to the ongoing investigation of sexual misconduct and instead produced falsified notes to investigators.”

Queen originally pleaded not guilty to the charges in May.

Queen served as interim provost at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (SWBTS) at the time under investigation.

In February, Friendly Avenue Baptist Church in Greensboro, N.C., announced it had called Queen as senior pastor. The church placed in him on leave in May following the indictment.

In a statement released Wednesday, church leaders said, “We stand firmly against any behavior that undermines trust and integrity. Our church leadership is reviewing these recent developments as it works to complete its investigation and submit a recommendation to the church membership concerning Dr. Queen’s status and relationship with Friendly Avenue Baptist Church, all in accordance with the church’s governing documents.”

The Department of Justice (DOJ) first informed Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) leaders of its intent to investigate the SBC and its entities in August 2022.

Sentencing for Queen is set for Feb. 26, 2025.

In a statement, SWBTS said, “From the beginning, Southwestern Seminary has fully cooperated with the Department of Justice in its investigation of sexual abuse in the Southern Baptist Convention. We remain resolute in our commitment to continue to do so.”

The statement said the seminary is praying for “victims of sexual abuse and remains committed to doing everything possible to protect all members of the seminary community from sexual abuse and harassment.”

The statement also offered prayers for “Matt Queen and his family, as well as for others who have been involved in this process.”

Earlier this year, the seminary identified Terri Stovall, the seminary’s dean of women, and Heath Woolman, former chief of staff and current pastor of Fruit Cove Baptist Church in St. Johns, Fla., as other staff members involved in the handling of a sexual abuse allegation.

Neither has been charged with wrongdoing by the DOJ.

In a statement issued Wednesday, Stovall said, “All my actions in this matter were motivated by the desire to do what was right for an alleged victim, even when it meant standing against the malicious actions of Queen and other men who are now former employees but were in positions of authority at the time.”

She said she is grateful for the work of the U.S. Attorney’s office and her “hope is that the full truth and extent of his actions — and the actions of others who are no longer employed at Southwestern — will one day come to light.”

Stovall said she is determined to continue serving the seminary but the case has “caused deep harm to me and others within our Southwestern community, and has brought significant cost to the institution, while harming their own gospel witness.”

(EDITOR’S NOTE — Brandon Porter serves as vice president for communications at the SBC Executive Committee. The original version of this article has been updated with a statement from Friendly Avenue Baptist Church.)