Carson Alexander Parago
Introduction
Carson Alexander Parago is a 23-year-old Winnipeg pastor and youth camp director who was charged on April 30, 2026, with sexually assaulting a teenage camp counsellor he had met through the camp. According to the Winnipeg Police Service, Parago groomed and forged a sexual relationship with the counsellor — who was a teenager at the time — over a period stretching from August 2025 to March 2026.
Background Information
Parago held a dual role that put him in authority over young people: he was an adult pastor who directed a youth camp group, and the alleged victim was a youth camp counsellor working under that structure. The Winnipeg Police Service’s Sex Crimes Unit received information about the alleged assault in March 2026, which triggered the investigation that led to the charges.
The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation
Charged, not convicted. Parago has been charged but not tried. The allegations below come from the Winnipeg Police Service’s release, and he is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
According to the police service, between August 2025 and March 2026 “the pastor forged a sexual relationship by grooming and gaining the trust of a youth camp counsellor who was a teenager at the time.” The survivor met with the accused on multiple occasions in private and also received sexually explicit material sent by the accused, the release said.
On April 30, 2026, Parago was charged with four offenses: sexual assault, sexual exploitation, luring a person under 18 years of age by means of telecommunication, and transmitting, making available, distributing or selling sexually explicit material to a person under 18 years.
The police service’s public notice of the case — issued when Parago was taken into custody — identified him by his pastor and camp-director roles and carried its standard notice that the contents may relate to violence or trauma. Parago was released by way of Crown-authorized conditions rather than held for a detention hearing.
Public Reaction and Consequences
The case was publicized through the Winnipeg Police Service’s own news release, unusual visibility for a charge announcement and a reflection of the service’s practice of naming cases where a position of community trust is alleged to have been exploited. The release paired the criminal allegations with victim-support information, directing survivors to WPS Victim Services and the Klinic Sexual Assault Crisis Line.
No public statement from Parago, his church, or the camp organization was reported in the available coverage, and the police release did not name the institutions involved beyond describing his roles.
Current Status
Parago was charged on April 30, 2026, and released on Crown-authorized conditions. The case was before the courts as of the release, and no trial date or resolution was reported in the available coverage.
Impact on Their Career/Life
Whatever the outcome of the prosecution, the charges end Parago’s work with young people: sexual assault, sexual exploitation and child-luring charges are categorically disqualifying for ministry and camp leadership, and his arrest was announced to the city with his religious role in the headline. The alleged conduct spanned the better part of a year at a camp where the accused directed the very program the counsellor served in.
Sources
- Winnipeg Police Service: “Teen sexually assaulted. Pastor/Camp Director in custody: C26-60730” source