A Roman Catholic priest from Pennsylvania has been accused of inappropriately touching a 17-year-old girl and sending her nude photos through social media, according to authorities on Aug. 21.
Father Kevin Lonergan, 30, has been charged with one count of corruption of minors and one count of indecent assault for alleged inappropriate sexual contact with the girl in June while serving as a priest, Lehigh County District Attorney James Martin said during a press conference.
He has also been accused of contacting her via Snapchat—a social media application where users can share photos and videos—and sending her nude images of himself over the period of December 2017 to January 2018.
“[Kevin Lonergan] has been charged with one count of corruption of minors and one count of indecent assault. Indecent assault is a misdemeanor of the second degree; corruption is a felony of the third degree,” Martin said.
The diocese also said they were asked to delay their public announcement about Lonergan’s removal by the district attorney as “it might interfere with the investigation.”
“The Diocese cooperated fully with the law enforcement investigation,” the statement said.
‘Predator Priests’ Revealed in Alarming Report
The Aug. 21 announcement comes at a time when the state is grappling over a disturbing report accusing more than 300 clergymen across Pennsylvania of sexual abuse (pdf). The nearly 900-page state grand jury report was released on Aug. 14 and detailed the widespread and decades-long sexual abuse by clergy, as well as the systemic coverup efforts of church officials.Lonergan is not among the 301 clergymen listed in the alarming report, according to the Diocese of Allentown. The 30-year-old was accused after the investigation for the report was completed.
The report identified more than 1,000 child victims, the majority of whom were boys, however it indicated that the real number of children whose records were lost or who were too afraid to come forward “is in the thousands.”