Woman says minister sexually assaulted her

A woman has said she was sexually assaulted by a minister from the Presbyterian Church in Ireland in the 1970s.

Reverend Derek Poots was driving 17-year-old Maggie Montgomery home from a school play in 1978 when she said he put his hands up her skirt and touched her genitals.

Rev Poots went on to become the deputy clerk of the General Assembly – one of the most senior positions within the church.

A Presbyterian Church in Ireland (PCI) spokesperson said it was distressed to learn of these allegations and the “Church’s evident failings in dealing with this correctly at the time”.

In a statement, Rev Poots’ family said: “We are shocked and profoundly saddened by the allegations of abuse relating to our father.”

“We take some comfort in knowing the Presbyterian Church has acknowledged its failings and is taking action to protect vulnerable people. Above all our thoughts and prayers are with everyone who has been harmed by abuse,” they added.

In November 2025, the head of the Church stepped down after “serious and significant failings” in safeguarding which took place between 2009 and 2022.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) launched a criminal investigation with a dedicated investigating team.

Warning: This article contains distressing details

Rev Poots was the minister of Trinity Presbyterian Church in Ballymoney from 1964 to 1990, although Ms Montgomery was not a member of his congregation.

Ms Montgomery was starring as Eliza Doolittle in a school production of My Fair Lady.

At a dress rehearsal the night before, Rev Poots told her mother that he could drive her home after the performance to save her the journey.

“I can remember my heart sank because I didn’t like him at all and I didn’t feel comfortable around him,” Ms Montgomery told BBC Radio Ulster’s Talkback programme.

The minister’s son and friend were also due to get a lift home.

“I thought I’ll get into the back seat beside the son’s friend, but oh no the leading lady has to sit in the front seat,” she continued.

She said Rev Poots dropped both boys off before taking her home.

“Once his son had been dropped off, he then started what I would say was just dirty chat,” she added.

After asking about her sexual experience, Ms Montgomery said Rev Poots put his hand on her leg.

“Right up underneath my skirt, touching my private parts. At that point, I threw his hand away. I opened the car door and I jumped out,” she added

A few days later Ms Montgomery told her sister-in-law who told her mother.

“My mother’s reaction was: ‘Oh surely not, you must have misunderstood him’.

“She didn’t believe it.”

Ms Montgomery also told her brother at this time, who later became a Presbyterian minister, the Rev Ricky Montgomery.

Ms Montgomery said she did not report Rev Poots as she feared others would not believe her either.

“I know he’s dead and he’s not able to speak back but believe me, people within the church knew about him,” she told Talkback.

“It’s trauma and trauma never leaves you, and now that the Presbyterian Church is actually looking at safeguarding, I felt this was the right time to speak out.”

Rev Poots was installed in Trinity Presbyterian Church in Ballymoney in 1964.

In 1990 he was appointed Deputy Clerk and Assistant General Secretary of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland.

Ms Montgomery said she later encountered Rev Poots at the North Eastern Education and Library Board where she worked. She said she would leave the room when he appeared because she was uncomfortable in his presence.

In 2002, when he retired as deputy clerk, Rev Poots was awarded an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from Union Theological College in Belfast.

The college was founded by the Presbyterian Church in Ireland in 1853 as a training centre for ministers.

Prof Laurence Kirkpatrick, who was a faculty member in 2002, said he had objected to awarding the degree because he had been aware of the allegation that Rev Poots had sexually molested Maggie Montgomery.

Prof Kirkpatrick said he shared this information with other faculty members, although he did not reveal who the girl was, but that a decision was made to proceed with the award.

“I voted against awarding a DD degree to Rev Poots but was outvoted,” Prof Kirkpatrick said.

“I had no option but to register my protest by absenting myself from the graduation ceremony on 10 May. I did not attend the 2002 graduation ceremony and the matter was never raised with me again.”

Rev Poots died in 2013.

In November when the Presbyterian Church revealed its current safeguarding team had identified failings, the convener of the general council of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland Rev David Bruce said ensuring the safety of all those who take part in the church was a “priority”.

However, he added that the “failings were magnified by major gaps in necessary record keeping, so it is inevitable that we have not identified all situations where practice was unacceptable”.

He said this included situations where the Church failed to make referrals to statutory authorities when required, and “did not respond adequately to concerns expressed to us about individuals in congregations”.

The Presbyterian Church in Ireland said it encouraged all victims and survivors of abuse to contact the police.

“Even in cases of historical abuse, we would encourage victims to come forward,” it said in its statement.

“However, as these specific allegations may form part of PSNI’s ongoing investigation, the Church can make no further comment on these matters that have been raised, except to encourage all victims and survivors to come forward and report the abuse that they suffered, and to seek the help and support that they need.”

If you have been affected by any of the issues in this story, support and information is available at the BBC’s Action Line.

You can listen to Talkback on BBC Radio Ulster at 12:00 GMT or on BBC Sounds.