Former Hillsong leader Brian Houston has been found not guilty of covering up his father’s historical sexual abuse of a child, media reports said Thursday.

Houston, 69, stood trial on one count of concealing a serious indictable offense of another person, for concealing information from police about child abuse by his father, Frank, who was also a pastor and died in 2004.

Frank Houston had been accused of sexually abusing a young boy while a preacher in the 1970s.

A royal commission in 2015 found the younger Houston was told about the allegations in 1999 but failed to report them to authorities, which sparked a police investigation.

In his testimony, Houston said he did not report the matter to the police because he was upholding the express wishes of his father’s victim that he did not want the matter pursued by "secular authorities."

A Sydney Morning Herald report said Magistrate Gareth Christofi found Houston believed on reasonable grounds that the victim, Brett Sengstock, did not want the matter reported to police.

Sengstock had earlier told the court he believes the church "bought" his silence by giving him $10,000 after meeting with Frank Houston in 1999.

"The Crown suggested the amount was 'hush money', but Christofi said he could not be satisfied the money was an attempt to silence Sengstock as opposed to some kind of informal financial compensation," the report said.

Founded by Brian and Bobbie in Sydney in the 1980s, Hillsong has grown from its Australian roots into a global megachurch, which claims an average weekly attendance of 150,000 people.

The church is known for its rock concert-style services that feature pop music and high-profile special guests, including Justin Bieber and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison.

Houston resigned from Hillsong ahead of the trial.

• Hillsong megachurch founder Brian Houston resigns
• Hillsong founder Brian Houston steps down as leader of church ahead of trial

With Agence France-Presse