A priest from St. Ignatius Loyola in Monfort Heights has been placed on administrative leave after allegations of inappropriate conduct. On Monday night the church had an emergency meeting to notify the parishioners.
Members of St. Ignatius Loyola Church lined up early and packed into the church to get a seat inside of the emergency meeting. The priest currently placed on administrative leave is not being named because he has not been criminally charged.
Parishioners tell FOX 19 that during the meeting church leaders discussed the allegations.
“We found out it was inappropriate texting to a male student here at St. Ignatius,” said Mike Hausfeld, who has been a lifelong member of the church.
Some of the church members say they believe the allegations are being blown out of proportion. Yet, others tell us that they are concerned, especially since the priest may have a similar past.
“We found out tonight that there were some allegations at St. Maximilian where he came from at that parish, so I feel there’s a little bit of solid ground here for what’s going on,” said Hausfeld.
Hausfeld and several others left the meeting in frustration because they say they were not getting clear answers from the Father about the priest’s past and what the church plans to do next.
“I actually asked and said if he’s cleared of all the allegations will he be back here at St. Ignatius. He did not answer the question,” said Hausfeld.
Moving forward, Hausfeld and several others said they want to see more transparency.
“At this point I want to see everything laid out. Where he’s been. What he’s done at other parishes, the complaints. Quite frankly if there’s allegations against him he should not be around children,” said Hausfeld.
FOX19 did reach out to the Archdiocese of Cincinnati to see if the priest has other allegations at other parishes and to learn how many children may be involved. Right now we are still waiting to hear back.
