A well-known New Orleans gospel singer and former choir teacher accused of grooming and raping a teenage boy will remain jailed without bond after a hearing in court on Monday.

Joshua "Josh" Kagler, 38, appeared in Orleans Parish Magistrate Court on a handful of sexual abuse charges he faces in two separate cases. He was ordered held without bond in both, according to court records.

Kagler, who has worked as a choir teacher at several local high schools and is known for his gospel group, Josh Kagler and Harmonistic Praise Crusade, was initially arrested on July 22 and booked into the Orleans Parish jail on five counts of trafficking a child for sexual purposes, five counts of indecent behavior with a juvenile, one count of third-degree rape and one count of sexual battery.

Two day

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