Leader of Twin Cities religious nonprofit charged with possessing child pornography

The executive director of a St. Paul religious nonprofit has been charged with possessing an extensive amount of child pornography after admitting to investigators that an “attraction/repulsion dynamic” made him seek out the material.

Drew Michael Brooks, 67, was charged via summons in Ramsey County, and his first court appearance is set for next week.

He is the executive director of Faith Partners in St. Paul. IRS forms filed by the nonprofit last year show that its mission is “to help faith communities develop congregational addiction team ministries.”

From 2019-2023, the organization brought in nearly $400,000 in public support — including $161,566 in 2023. That year, Brooks was paid $56,000 as executive director.

The website associated with Faith Partners is no longer operational, and messages were left at the phone number listed for the nonprofit. Brooks’ attorney, Jill Brisbois with the Ramsey County Public Defender’s Office, had no comment on the charges.

The criminal complaint details how Brooks came to the attention of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and Brooks’ explanation to police about how his personal history played into his use of child porn.

A message on the center’s tip line that someone was trying to share child sexual abuse material was first connected to the home address of Brooks and his wife in Roseville on Christmas Eve 2022. Additional tips came in through 2023 and 2024.

When police arrived, they collected computers and flash drives and also discovered an envelope inside a laptop bag in Brooks’ home office. Inside the envelope were 36 printed images of children being sexually abused. Investigators said the images showed children that could range in age from 6 months to 12 years old.

Brooks agreed to be interviewed by police and the charges say he waived his Miranda rights. When officers laid the folder on the table, he acknowledged there were photos of children inside it and that some were sexual. He said he forgot the folder even existed.

He also provided passwords to his electronic devices. Police found a laptop with 30 open tabs on it, one showing images of apparent child sexual abuse.

Brooks told police he was sexually assaulted by his grandfather when he was between 7 and 9 years old. He began using drugs and alcohol when he was between 11 and 13. He started recovery for drugs and alcohol at 22 and began attending meetings of Sex Addicts Anonymous at 24.

Brooks admitted to looking at child pornography the week investigators arrived and said it would be found on his browser history. He also said he is “not necessarily” attracted to children sexually but he is attracted to the novelty of it.

Faith Partners originated in Austin, Texas, in 1987. It later came to Minnesota, Ohio and Oklahoma, eventually gaining state and federal funding.