Monsignor Thomas J. Benestad
Monsignor Thomas J. Benestad is one of the 300 clergymen named in the grand jury report.
In 2011, the Allentown Diocese was approached by a man who alleged that Benestad sexually abused him from 1981 to 1983.
The victim was nine years old when the alleged abuse began.
The allegation was reported to the Northampton County District Attorney’s Office, which investigated the matter and found that the boy’s accusations were credible.
The victim told authorities that when he was a boy enrolled in Catholic school, he was taken out of class by a nun and sent to Benestad’s office because he had worn shorts to Confraternity of Christian Doctrine (CCD) study.
Since wearing shorts were ‘sinful,’ the boy was told to get on his knees and start praying once inside Benestad’s office.
Benestad then unzipped his pants and told the boy to give him oral sex, the grand jury report alleges.
The boy did so. Afterward, Benestad squirted holy water into the boy’s mouth and told him it was to ‘purify’ him.
No charges were ever brought because the alleged crimes took place beyond the statute of limitations.
Other alleged victims also complained about Benestad, who was allowed to continue to minister.
Benestad, who has denied all of the allegations, is now retired in Boca Raton, Florida.
Reverend Thomas J. Bender
In 1972, the Allentown Diocese received a report from a Deacon who also happened to be a Pennsylvania State Trooper.
The Deacon reported that another Trooper found Bender in a car with a male student from Nativity High School in Pottsville, where the clergyman was assigned.
Both Bender and the boy had their pants off, according to the Deacon.
Thomas J. Welsh, who was the Bishop of the Diocese, received the report. It stated that the Trooper gave Bender a ‘lecture and sent him on his way.’
When Bender was confronted about the incident, he claimed this was the first time this had happened. He was allowed to continue as a priest.
In 1984, a young male came forward and told church officials that three years earlier, when he was in seventh grade, Bender sexually abused him.
This abuse entailed oral and anal sex while Bender and the boy were in bed together.
Church officials sent Bender to psychotherapy, but still allowed him to continue to minister.
In 1986, the victim overdosed on drugs and was admitted to a psychiatric institute.
The victim and his family reported Bender to the authorities and filed a lawsuit against the church.
The next year, Bender was placed on a leave of absence. In 1988, he was arrested and convicted.
Bender was given a light sentence of probation. He was kept on a leave of absence until 2002, when he successfully applied for retirement benefits, including health insurance, life insurance, a living allowance, retreat fees, and car insurance.
In 2004, the Diocese received more reports of alleged abuse by Bender. Those allegations, some stemming from as far back as 1966, were reported to the authorities in Pennsylvania.
In 2006, Bender was arrested by an undercover police officer in New York State who posed as a ’14-year-old boy’ whom the former cleric tried to lure to a hotel room on Long Island.
He was sentenced to 10 years in prison and lifetime probation. Bender is a registered sex offender in the State of New York.
Father Ronald Yarrosh
In 2004, Father Ronald Yarrosh was found to be in possession of ‘a tremendous amount’ of child pornography.
A week later, Yarrosh was removed from his priestly ministry and ordered to undergo evaluation and treatment.
In May of that year, Pennsylvania State Police charged Yarrosh with 110 counts of sexual abuse of children.
Yarrosh was found to have had hundreds of child pornography photos, books, magazines, video, and DVDs in his possession, according to the grand jury report.
During a subsequent investigation, Yarrosh was also found to have embezzled $23,000 from his parish.
A year after his arrest, he pleaded guilty to theft and possession of child pornography.
He struck a plea bargain and agreed to serve between three and 23 months in prison.
Yarrosh ended up serving just three months. Upon his release, he registered with Pennsylvania State Police as a sex offender.
After his release from prison, Yarrosh was allowed to continue as a priest.
The Diocese granted him residence at St. Francis Villa in Orwigsburg – even though church officials considered him ‘a moderate to high risk to again use pornography and/or consort with prostitutes.’
In November 2006, authorities learned Yarrosh took trips to New York City with a seven-year-old child.
Yarrosh was also found to be in possession of child pornography – a violation of his court-ordered supervision.
Pennsylvania authorities sentenced Yarrosh to four-to-10 years behind bars.
In June 2007, the Diocese removed Yarrosh from the priesthood.
Reverend Joseph Zmijewski
In October 2004, the Allentown Diocese received a complaint from an adult woman who alleged that one of its priests sexually abused her when she was a child.
The victim told the Diocese that she was a member of the St. Mary Greek church in Reading.
She also attended Catholic school at St. Peter.
When she was in ninth grade in 1950, she met Father Joseph Zmijewski.
She said she frequently sought Zmijewski’s advice as she was having difficult meeting new friends and being acclimated to a new school.
Zmijewski came recommended by another priest because he was a registered psychologist.
The woman said that Zmijewski recommended that she come to his home in order to be treated with hypnosis.
She agreed to the hypnosis sessions.
The first three sessions did not go well and she was becoming frustrated.
During the fourth session, Zmijewski tried to hypnotize her once more. He told her to undress until she was naked, and she complied.
He then left the room while she was naked and did not return for some time.
After Zmijewski came back into the room, he instructed her to get dressed. She never returned for another session.
The woman kept the story to herself until well into adulthood.
Zmijewski died in 1968.
The Allentown Diocese referred the woman to the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, which served the area at the time since there was no Allentown Diocese as of yet.
Very Reverend Henry Strassner
In August 1988, the Allentown Diocese received a complaint from a 19-year-old man who alleged that Father Henry Strassner kissed him four times on the lips ‘in the same way a woman would kiss.’
The alleged incident occurred during a counseling session which Strassner administered to the man.
Strassner, when confronted about the incident, first denied knowing the man.
But then he admitted to the claims, saying that he ‘did not intend anything sexual.’
Strassner later claimed the victim ‘was essentially parentless and I wanted to simply affirm his sense of self-worth.’
He was was sent to see a counselor who then told the Diocese that there was ‘a lot more going on here than Father Strassner has admitted.’
In 1991, the Diocese received more complaints about alleged sexual abuse of children at the hands of Strassner.
One victim claimed Strassner molested him on more than one occasion when he was between the ages of six and nine.
The victim also claimed that another priest was involved in the abuse.
Another victims gave a much more detailed description of Strassner’s behavior.
The victim’s mother invited Strassner to their home after hearing him give a lecture on drugs.
During a counseling session, the victim, who was told to trust Strassner, confided in him.
At one point, Strassner told the victim he needed to ‘touch him.’
Strassner then began to masturbate the victim and perform oral sex on him.
After this incident was reported, Strassner was reassigned to a local Catholic high school.
The Diocese possessed documents indicating that between 25 and 30 people complained they were sexually abused by Strassner.
The victims reported post-traumatic stress, drug and alcohol abuse, criminal behavior, and suicidal thoughts in the years after they were assaulted.
Strassner was never removed from his position by the church. He died in 2009.
Reverend A. Gregory Uhrig
In May 2010, a 44-year-old woman submitted a complaint to the Allentown Diocese alleging that Father A. Gregory Uhrig sexually abused her when she was a 13-year-old girl.
The woman said the abuse took place when she was a seventh-grade student at St. Anthony Catholic school in Easton.
She said at the time she was working in the parish answering telephones.
During her time spent in the office, she got to know Uhrig, who was often invited to her family’s home for dinner.
Uhrig developed a relationship with the girl, who was suffering at the time from low self-esteem.
The priest would often compliment her as a way of building up her confidence.
The relationship became more physical, as Uhrig would hug her, hold her hands, and at times even kiss her on the lips.
The touching eventually escalated to full-scale groping, as Uhrig cupped her breasts through her clothing.
Uhrig also forced the girl to touch his leg and thigh area. He even pointed out when he had an erect penis.
These incidents took place in the rectory and in Uhrig’s car.
The woman said that these incidents contributed to three failed marriages.
The Diocese apparently knew of allegations against Uhrig back in 1995 and reported them to authorities.
But he was never prosecuted due to statute of limitations.
Reverend Bruno M. Tucci
In 1991, the Allentown Diocese received a report from a male who said that he was sexually molested by Father Bruno Tucci when he was 14 years old.
Tucci tickled him and put his hands down the back of his pants, the victim said.
The priest, on a different occasion, unbuttoned his pants and the victim’s pants.
Tucci then pulled both his pants and the victim’s pants down and forced skin to skin contact.
In order to avoid suspicion, Tucci would tickle the boy in front of his parents.
The victim also said that when his parents were at church for Christmas Eve mass, Tucci took off his pants and ‘played with him.’
That same evening, when the whole family was at midnight mass, the victim served at the altar for Tucci.
When the Diocese was told of these allegations, officials confronted Tucci, who confirmed them ‘exactly as the victim reported.’
Tucci said it was ‘just touching’ and that he did not commit ‘sodomy.’
Tucci was reassigned to a church position in New Mexico. He was then allowed to return to active ministry as a pastor in Nesquehoning, Pennsylvania.
In 1993, the victim told the Diocese he wanted to confront Tucci, who was allowed to continue as a priest.
This outraged the victim.
In 2002, Tucci offered to resign. The Bishop accepted.
That same year, the Diocese received another letter from a man who said that Tucci sexually molested him when he was a minor.
The crimes took place between 1977 and 1978. Tucci responded by saying that he could not recall specific details.
In 2005, Tucci’s request for him to be laicized was granted.
Tucci was last known to be a resident in Salisbury, Maryland.
Reverend Andrew Aloysius Ulincy
In 1981, Father Andrew Ulincy was reported to the Bethlehem Police for allegedly fondling a 17-year-old boy’s penis after he took a shower in a rectory.
Ulincy is alleged to have offered the boy alcohol. He also offered to ‘dry him off’ after the shower.
The priest then pinned the boy down on a bed and ‘anally penetrated him,’ the victim told an investigator working for the Diocese in June 2010.
The police knew of these details in 1981, and Ulincy admitted that the victim was telling the truth.
But no criminal charges were ever filed.
The Diocese was not only aware of the 1981 incident, but another that took place a decade later.
While a group of contractors were renovating St. Joseph church in Frackville, Ulinsky, who was living in the rectory at the time, ‘dropped his pants,’ in front of a 25-year-old male workers.
Ulinsky was said to be drunk at the time. It is also believed he targeted the male for indecent exposure.
A report was submitted to law enforcement, but nothing came of it after the contractor was paid $2,500.
It wasn’t until September 2010 – almost 30 years after the first report of sexual assault – that he was removed from active ministry.
Reverend Thomas C. Kelley
The late Reverend Thomas C. Kelley preferred mutual masturbation, oral sex, and anal sex with men between the ages of 18 and 25.
At least five men came forward to accuse Kelley of inappropriate sexual conduct.
One victim was paid $34,500 as part of a lawsuit in which Kelley was named.
His superiors in the Diocese, upon hearing of one of the complaints against Kelley, sent him to a treatment facility for psychotherapy in 1995.
Kelley was dissuaded from returning to the Erie Diocese because of his past behavior.
Instead, he relocated to Texas, where he was allowed to serve as a minister.
Kelley died in 2005.
Monsignor Thomas Snyderwine
In 1996, a young girl enrolled at St. Boniface Catholic school told a nun that she was forced to take a shower with her godfather, Monsignor Thomas Snyderwine, who proceeded to touch her in ways that made her uncomfortable.
The girl said the incident took place when she stayed overnight five years earlier in Snyderwine’s trailer.
Snyderwine bought the girl dresses and showered her with gifts.
The girl’s parents asked the nun, Sister Steff, to talk to Snyderwine.
When the nun confronted Snyderwine, she threatened to report him to the Bishop Michael Murphy of the Erie Diocese if the behavior was repeated.
The matter was not revisited until 2002, when news media reports about massive sex abuse and coverups in the Catholic Church were common.
Sister Steff brought up the matter with Bishop Donald Trautman, who said he would speak to the Review Board and later decide on Snyderwine’s future.
But Trautman said he was stymied when Sister Steff refused to give him the name of the victim.
The victim, who was now a freshman in college, and her parents had no interest in pursuing the matter.
Snyderwine was also said to have said mass for the family when a relative died.
Trautman eventually decided there was no need to report the issue to authorities.
Reverend Philip A. Altavilla
On December 15, 1998, Father Philip A. Altavilla drove a 13-year-old girl home after she helped as an altar server during midnight mass.
After mass, Altavilla gave the girl alcohol and gave her a ride home. On the way, he pulled the car into an empty parking lot.
Altavilla then swung the girl’s legs across his lap, touched her feet, and worked his hands up her thigh towards the girl’s vagina.
When the girl told him to stop, he did.
It wasn’t until April 2014 that Altavilla was arrested and charged with indecent assault and corruption of minors.
He admitted to authorities that he had fetishes with feet, legs, pantyhose, strangulation, and chloroform.
Soon afterward, he resigned from the Scranton Diocese.
Altavilla ‘had admitted to the alleged victim in a consensual phone intercept that he had touched her inappropriately,’ according to a letter written by the Diocese.
But the case against him was dismissed because the statute of limitations had expired.
A civil lawsuit was brought against Altavilla in 2014. That case was eventually settled.
The Scranton Diocese has encouraged more potential victims of Altavilla to come forward.
Reverend Robert M. Timchak
On December 9, 2008, the Scranton Diocese received an anonymous letter alleging that Father Robert M. Timchak was downloading child pornography.
The Diocese turned over the material that was received to the Pike County District Attorney’s Office.
After a police investigation, Timchak was charged with possessing child pornography.
He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to state prison.
On January 24, 2014, Pope Francis granted dispensation to Timchak.
Reverend W. Jeffrey Paulish
In 2013, Father W. Jeffrey Paulish was caught having sex with a 15-year-old boy on the campus of the University of Scranton.
He was arrested in September of that year and charged by the Lackawanna County District Attorney’s Office.
Paulish eventually pleaded guilty to corruption of a minor and was sentenced to between eight and 23 months in prison.
The Scranton Diocese urged parishioners who were either aware of similar situations involving Paulish to report them to law enforcement.
Reverend Samuel B. Slocum
Despite a history of inappropriate relationships with young boys and girls going back 30 years, Father Samuel B. Slocum was never reported to the authorities by the Erie Diocese.
In 1980, a fellow priest reported Slocum to a senior church official after it was learned he maintained an inappropriate relationship with a 14-year-old girl.
That same year, Slocum was also engaged in inappropriate relations with a 16-year-old boy.
Slocum admitted to the grand jury last year that these relationships gave him ‘emotional or sexual gratification.’
He denied touching the girl, but did say that he engaged in physical wrestling, tickling, and touching with the young boy.
Slocum ingratiated himself with the childrens’ parents – a practice known as ‘grooming’ – as a way of gaining their trust and cementing his relationship with the kids.
He was known to have done this with at least four children before he was arrested.
In 2012, he was convicted by a jury of concealment of the whereabouts of a child and corruption of minors.
Slocum told the grand jury that a 14-year-old girl and a 17-year-old girl were ‘in love’ with him and ‘wrote him love letter.’
He touched one of the girl’s thighs and buttocks, though he insisted it was ‘accidental.’
When one of the girls came forward to complain, he ‘enlisted the assistance of a third party to apply pressure’ and ‘have her recant her accusation against him.’
Slocum was also known to have showered another minor with gifts from
Abercrombie and Fitch.
In 1995, the Diocese became aware of an ‘unhealthy relationship’ Slocum had with a high school senior, including offers of cash, invitations to drink beer, and working with the student late into the night.
The boy’s mother was a teacher employed by the Diocese. She submitted a complaint at great risk to her employment.
It wasn’t until 2011, when criminal charges were filed against him, did the Diocese remove Slocum from ministry.
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