Willow Creek Investigation Finds Allegations Against Bill Hybels Credible

CHICAGO (CBS) -- A new report on sexual misconduct allegations against former suburban megachurch pastor Bill Hybels finds that the allegations were true.

Willow Creek Community Church commissioned the report by an independent panel to investigate the allegations that led to Hybels' resignation.

The report concludes "Bill Hybels verbally and emotionally intimidated both female and male employees."

"Allegations of sexually inappropriate words and actions by Bill Hybels... are credible," the report stated.

The Willow Creek founder stepped down in April 2018.

The report shows allegations started surfacing back in 2014. It claims Hybels initiated mentoring relationships with staffers who later accused him of sexual misconduct.

And male staffers claimed Hybels verbally abused them during power trips.

The independent panel investigating was made up of four evangelical leaders from churches across the country.

They say they tried to access church emails connected to the scandal but were not able to recover any.

The panel says the church board was not prepared to handle the scandal.

They recommend the church pay for counseling for alleged victims and that Hybels seek counseling himself.