A Tennessee pastor recognized for years of ministry work across the nation will now call a prison cell home for life. After a jury in Rutherford County found him guilty of heinous crimes against a child, his wife faced convictions for her complicit role, local authorities confirmed.
Benjamin Garlick, aged 35, was convicted on Monday of multiple charges, including seven counts of aggravated child rape and six counts of aggravated sexual battery. Additionally, he faced one count of soliciting sexual exploitation of a minor and two violations under the Tennessee Child Protection Act, culminating from an intense two-week trial.
The courtroom of Circuit Court Judge Barry Tidwell saw Garlick sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole on the charges of aggravated rape. However, his legal journey continues as he awaits sentencing for his other convictions, slated for November 10, as reported by the Murfreesboro Police Department.
Meanwhile, Shaantal Garlick, his 32-year-old wife, was convicted on two counts of facilitating the aggravated rape of a child, alongside two charges of aggravated child neglect. Her fate will also be determined on November 10 when she receives her sentencing.
In a sobering conclusion to the trial, both Benjamin and Shaantal Garlick were found guilty of child abuse-related offenses, raising community awareness and prompting further discussions on child protection. (Image credit: Murfreesboro TN Police Department)
The case began in August 2023, when the Murfreesboro Police Department’s Special Victims Unit launched an investigation into the sexual abuse of a child who was just 5 years old at the time. Police said the abuse had occurred over several years.
As detectives dug deeper, they identified two additional victims, according to police.
Investigators also determined that Shaantal Garlick knowingly neglected a victim in a way that affected the child’s health and welfare and assisted in the sexual abuse, police said.
“The Murfreesboro Police Department thanks all members of the Child Protective Investigative Team (CPIT) for their tireless work throughout this investigation and trial, ensuring the victims’ voices were heard and justice was served,” Det. James Wilkinson, lead investigator, said after the convictions.
“The children of Rutherford County are safer because of the compassion, dedication, and commitment each member of the CPIT Team brings to their roles every day.”
Benjamin and Shaantal Garlick are pictured together before their arrests. Benjamin Garlick, a traveling Tennessee pastor, was convicted of aggravated rape of a child and other child sex crimes. Shaantal Garlick was convicted of facilitating aggravated rape of a child and aggravated child neglect. (Internet Archive Wayback Machine/Laespada.org)
Garlick’s life outside the courtroom stood in stark contrast to the crimes for which he was convicted. Murfreesboro police said their investigation showed he had spent several years traveling as a minister, primarily focused on the Hispanic community, and that he and his wife had traveled across the country.
WSMV previously reported that Garlick helped run La Espada, a Murfreesboro-based ministry for Spanish speakers. The station reported that videos and images posted online showed Garlick and his sermons connected with churches in Florida, Indiana, Minnesota and Texas.
The couple also described deep family ties to the ministry in biographies that appeared on La Espada’s former website and remain available through the Internet Archive. The site said La Espada was founded by Garlick’s grandfather, Rolando Garlick, and showed Benjamin working with the ministry under the direction of his late father, Daniel Garlick, by at least 2015.
Benjamin Garlick wrote that he began traveling with his father as a child, felt drawn to the ministry at a young age and later became an evangelist. Shaantal Garlick wrote that she met Benjamin at a youth conference when she was 18 and described her calling as serving God full time alongside her husband and working with La Espada to reach the Hispanic community with the Gospel.
The Murfreesboro Police Department’s Special Victims Unit launched its investigation into Benjamin Garlick in August 2023. (Murfreesboro TN Police Department)
Benjamin and Shaantal Garlick were arrested in September 2023. The case continued to grow, and a Rutherford County grand jury reindicted the couple in March 2024, according to Murfreesboro police.
As investigators pursued the case, Special Victims Unit detectives publicly urged potential victims to come forward, particularly people in the Hispanic community, police said.
Shaantal Garlick, who had been free on bond, was taken into custody following Monday’s verdict, police said. Both she and her husband are being held at the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center.