SACRAMENTO, Calif. (SacUpdate) — A former military security specialist, who later became an elder at a church in Sacramento, has been charged in two alleged sex crimes that occurred on military bases in Cuba and Japan.
Linwood Hosea Gordon, 51, of El Dorado Hills has been charged with one count of abusive sexual contact and one count of sexual abuse of a minor, both of which fall under the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act of 2000.
Gordon’s five-page indictment, unsealed on November 3rd, briefly outlines his alleged crimes. A federal grand jury says he forcibly touched an unidentified victim at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Station in Cuba in a sexual manner on a sensitive part of their body such as the groin or inner thigh. At the time, he worked as a Special Security Officer for JTF-GITMO.
He’s also accused of engaging in several sex acts with an unidentified minor somewhere between the ages of 12 and 16 at several military installations in Japan between the years of 2003 and 2005.
Gordon’s LinkedIn profile boasts an impressive resume – over 30 years of experience in various fields relating to security and law enforcement. He began his career as a regional manager in the Federal Protective Service in Chicago, Illinois. From there, he worked for the Navy in DC before working in three different places under the Department of Defense from 2015 to 2018. His final position was Security Programs Manager for the Defense Commissary Agency in McLellan Park.
After he left his military career, Gordon became an elder at the Christ Temple Apostolic Church in the La Riviera neighborhood of Sacramento. Videos posted to the church’s Facebook and YouTube channels show various Sunday school sessions he hosted. On Gordon’s Periscope page, he wears a US Army pin during a virtual service – a nod to his military background.
Gordon was arrested outside of his home in El Dorado Hills on the 2nd and has been held at the Sacramento County Main Jail on a federal hold ever since.
A detention hearing was held on Thursday, with Gordon appearing via video conference from the jail. He gave two thumbs up to the camera to confirm he could hear the court. US Judge Carolyn Delaney floated the idea that the hearing be rescheduled next week due to the complex nature of the case – Pretrial Services had not yet compiled a report.
Gordon’s public defender, Christina Sinha, expressed concern with the idea but ultimately agreed.
“It’s not ideal but we don’t really see another way around it,” she said.
Gordon was kept in US Marshal custody at the jail, with a hearing rescheduled for Monday.
“I’ll take it all up on Monday at 2:00. I’ll see all of you then,” the judge said.
Gordon has pleaded not guilty and faces up to 17 years in prison if convicted on both counts. He can also be up to half-a-million dollars. The Christ Temple Apostolic Church and the US Army in Japan didn’t immediately return requests for comment.
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