Pastor Gideon Clayton made his first appearance on 21 December 2023. He is portrayed by Howard Saddler.
Backstory
The Pastor has raped multiple women in the past. Firstly, he raped a lady called Dolores in 2001 - who was part of a local community group which the Pastor led, Dolores spoke out to a friend but didn’t get any justice.
Years later in 2008, Pastor Clayton raped Sarah. Sarah tried to speak out to a counsellor about her assault yet they do not believe her, she didn’t get any justice.
Rachel, in 2012, was raped by Pastor Clayton and spoke out to a friend. Yet, nothing happened and the Pastor got away with it, she got no justice.
In 2016, the Pastor raped Delia Bennett. She spoke out to the police and the DI’s believed Delia, yet there was a lack of evidence so they couldn’t charge the Pastor. She got no justice.
In 2020, the Pastor targeted his next victim, Emma. Her husband found out and was enraged, yet Emma convinced him to not go after the Pastor as it’d end badly. She got no justice.
Storylines
Pastor Clayton is a pastor at the local church. Yolande Trueman grows close with him, and when Avani Nandra-Hart jokes about the two being more than friends, Denzel Danes brushes her off. Later when Denzel helps the two hand out curry at Walford Community Centre, Pastor Clayton makes a rude comment about Denzel to Yolande, and in revenge, Denzel throws curry on Pastor Clayton's leg, pretending it was an accident.
The next day, Pastor Clayton tells Yolande's to look for the food in Denzel, saying not many people his age would give up their time like he does. Denzel later tells Yolande about his concerns about Pastor Clayton splitting her and Patrick up, but she brushes them off and calls him crazy.
Rumours begin to spread that Pastor Clayton and Yolande are more than friends, which affects their bond. When Yolande suggests a food van and fundraiser event, the Pastor is ecstatic and hugs Yolande - although he moves his hand in an uncomfortable manner. When Yolande addresses her concerns, Pastor Clayton gets angry and banishes her from the fundraiser. Although, they later make up and their friendship expands. Although the Pastor has other intentions.
On the day of the fundraiser, the Pastor is being very strange and close with Yolande. In the midst of the event in the church, Yolande goes to a storage room to find something and he follows her. This scene shows him saying to her “We still have a lot of time” and locks the door, the next scene is Yolande on the floor in tears as he has sexually assaulted her. As the episode progresses, there are several flashback scenes of other women in different churches coming forward to his sexual assault towards them.
Over the next several weeks, Yolande and the Pastor have numerous encounters and arguments. It is later planned for Pastor Clayton to baptise Chelsea Fox's son, Jordan Fox. Yolande is furious and begs with Chelsea to find a different Pastor. Chelsea refuses as Yolande continues to go into a downward spiral. Patrick Trueman finds out about the sexual assault and tries to attack the Pastor, though Yolande stops him.
Later, Chelsea gets Jordan baptised and Yolande tries to keep her cool. They have a stand off and the Pastor warns her to keep quiet. However, he inappropriately places his hand on Yolande and she gets scared and runs away, reporting him to the police - he is later arrested and questioned though released due to a lack of evidence. Yolande and Delia Bennett come together and both make a statement, reopening their cases and the Pastor is arrested once again.
Victim Count
Rape victims
Sexual assault victims
- Yolande Trueman (17 April 2024) - Assaulted in the Community Centre at a church fundraiser.