Twin Cities church volunteer charged with sexually assaulting four children has ‘lengthy history’ of accusations

A St. Paul man with a lengthy history of sexual assault accusations was charged last week with sexually assaulting four children under the age of 6 who attend King of Kings Lutheran Church and School in Roseville.

Joshua Alirio Seeman, 50, faces two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and two counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct in Ramsey County District Court. Prosecutors allege that three boys and one girl were taken into bathroom stalls during Sunday school and penetrated and fondled by Seeman. The charges note that Seeman had volunteered at the church for two years.

In 2022, Seeman was charged with fourth-degree sexual assault in Ramsey County after he allegedly tried to make a disabled friend and former co-worker perform oral sex on him in a White Bear Lake park bathroom. It is the only criminal charge on his record, but police indicated he has been the subject of numerous sexual assault complaints dating back to 2001. Most have been declined for charges because he is deemed mentally incompetent.

An employee who answered the phone at King of Kings said the church would not comment. Messages left with Seeman’s attorney were not immediately returned on Monday.

According to the charges:

Last week, the parents of a 5-year-old boy reported to police that he had been sexually assaulted by Seeman. The parents had picked him up from Sunday school, and he complained of physical pain. The parents asked more questions, and the child said that Seeman had taken him into the bathroom and assaulted him. The boy said Seeman told him his parents said it was OK for them to go to the bathroom together and had done this three or four times in the past.

The boy’s Sunday school teacher said that two weeks earlier the boy had gone with Seeman to the bathroom and had been missing for about 30 minutes, “which was unusual.”

After this disclosure, the parents approached a former assistant pastor at the church and told him what had happened. The former assistant pastor shared the information with several family members who still work at the church, includ-ing his granddaughter, who is a kindergarten teacher. She said she had seen Seeman, who was commonly referred to as “Mr. Josh,” walk boys and girls into the bathroom.

The family of the assistant pastor quickly identified another victim after one of his grandchildren, a 6-year-old boy, reported that Seeman had taken him into a bathroom, locked the door, made him pull down his pants and touched him.

The boy’s mother provided police with text messages showing that Seeman had been reaching out to the family about wanting to babysit their children and go bowling.

Two more victims were identified after their mother, whose brother-in-law is the former assistant pastor at King of Kings, was informed about the sexual assault allegations. The mom recalled that her 5-year-old daughter was complaining of pain and was skittish during baths. When the mom asked her about “Mr. Josh,” the girl said he had molested her.

The next day, the mom brought her daughter and her 4-year-old son to the assistant pastor’s home to talk about what had happened. The boy said that “Mr. Josh” would take him into a stall and ask if he needed to go the bathroom. The boy began crying.

“These reports provide a historical picture of sexually assaultive behavior by Seeman,” which includes biting people, locking them inside and ignoring pleas to stop. Charges have been declined in every case except the 2022 sexual assault because of Seeman’s “cognitive disability.”

The charges note that “multiple attempts” have been made to get Seeman help for his behavior. Seeman had been found mentally incompetent to stand trial in the 2022 assault, but a notice of intent to prosecute was filed recently.