Ordained minister arrested in Eastern Washington accused of drug abuse, rape of woman and child abuse

Emma Epperly / The Spokesman Review (TNS)

An ordained minister was arrested in Spokane on Friday on charges of drugging and raping a woman and sexually assaulting a child.

Russell Anders, 55, was arrested Friday morning at his home in the 1800 block of West Gardener Avenue in Spokane by a U.S. Marshals task force on an outstanding federal warrant.

Anders is charged with second-degree rape and first-degree voyeurism in Spokane.

According to court documents, a woman woke up several times after having drinks with Anders feeling unwell. Eventually, she was able to access his laptop and find videos of Anders having sex with her while she was unconscious after slipping sleeping pills into their drinks, court documents say.

She told police that she also found sexually explicit videos of children on the laptop.

Last year, Anders was charged in federal court in Seattle with, among other things, the production of child pornography and possession of images of minors engaged in sexually explicit acts.

He also faces cases pending against him in Seattle, including charges of child abuse and sexual exploitation of minors, as well as other similar crimes.

It is unclear whether Anders was actively involved as a minister.

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