This is our initial post on United Pentecostal Church minister Audley F. Castro, who was the long-term pastor of the Apostolic Pentecostal Church Of Pickering (APC) in Ontario, a legally affiliated UPCI church. He resigned on July 9, 2025 amidst allegations of sexual misconduct allegedly spanning many years. It is unknown if he has turned in his UPCI license.
The week of July 6, 2025, I heard about a then upcoming meeting addressing allegations of sexual abuse against multiple women. A church member meeting was scheduled for Monday, July 14, at 7pm.
A letter had gone out to former and current members with the first paragraph stating, “For over 20 years, Pastor Audley Castro has been accused of sexually abusing women within our church community. These are not isolated incidents—they represent a devastating pattern that has caused many women and families to quietly leave, carrying deep wounds while the truth remained buried under a culture of silence and protectionism.”
It went on to state, “Some Board members and Leaders are aware of Castro’s behaviour or at least are aware of the rumours. Their failure to act, disclose the truth, or protect the women of APC represents a serious breach of duty—not just legally, but morally and spiritually. Silence in the face of abuse is collusion.
“It must be said: Pastor Castro has single-handedly created a culture of fear, intimidation and manipulation at APC—a culture where questions cannot be asked, concerns cannot be raised, and silence is mistaken for reverence.
“…Castro is using silence as a weapon to avoid responsibility, hoping that by saying nothing, the church will move on. But silence is not neutrality, it’s protection of sin.”
The letter encouraged people to attend the meeting and ask questions, even sharing potential questions to ask, addressed feeling nervous and shared tips if people were feeling intimidated. At the end of this article are screenshots of the letter.
It had been shared with me that Audley Castro unexpectedly resigned as pastor during the meeting of July 14, and it was effective immediately. It was later discovered that it happened on July 9, 2025, when the board accepted his resignation. UPCI Ontario District Superintendent Arnold MacLauchlan and UPCI minister Winston Samuel Stewart will be the interim pastors. As the church is legally affiliated, they must have a UPCI licensed minister as the pastor.
For those who may be unaware, it is important to note that when a minister goes after a church member/attender, it is never only a matter of adultery, fornication, assault or rape. There is a power imbalance and that is why there are laws which make this carry a harsher charge and penalty. It is clergy sexual abuse as the minister is in a position of trust and responsibility. Any sexual contact between clergy and a congregant is inherently abusive.
Castro grew up in St. Andrew, Jamaica and attended church. In an interview, he admitted to making some bad decisions while in high school and in his late teens he started attending church again.
Audley Castro first appears in the 1990 UPCI Directory, which is indicative of him receiving his local license in 1989. The 1991 to 1993 Directories still show him with a local license and he is not listed as a pastor. I do not have directories from 1994-1998. By the 1999 Directory, he is seen with a general license and the church is listed with him as pastor. The 2003 Directory lists him as ordained. He continued to be listed through the 2025 edition.
According to the church website, Audley Castro oversaw all church activities, having started the church with his wife in 1993 in their basement apartment. The church moved locations several times through the years until they landed in their present location at 1920 Notion Road in 2019.
Castro published two books in 2018 and in one he touted himself as “an internationally recognized pastor, author, and conference speaker. He travels extensively, empowering believers to maximize their gifts and to become visibly active within their local church. Castro has taught in several colleges, seminaries and serves on various branding organizations.”
This is not the first time he, and some others in the church, have been accused of wrongdoing. That will be covered in another post.
I originally posted about this on July 15, 2025 on our Facebook Page.
You will find a complete list of articles in this series by clicking here.
Link to Part Two.
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