Woodward minister accused of molestation

Associated Press

WOODWARD, Okla. (AP) - A Woodward minister, educator and former foster parent has been arrested on three counts of lewd molestation involving a girl under age 13.

Minister Edwin Dowty at the New Covenant Church of Woodward was arraigned yesterday.

Court documents say the crimes occurred between 2005 and 2007.

The arrest comes after a nearly five month investigation by Woodward police, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and the Oklahoma Department of Human Services.

DHS spokesman George Johnson Junior says children that were in foster care in Dowty's home earlier this year were immediately removed when the investigation began.

Calls to Dowty's church Tuesday were not answered. His attorney, Bartlett Bouse, did not immediately return telephone calls.