The Buzz | US: Pennsylvania priest ordered detained until trial
A Roman Catholic priest was ordered to remain jailed until his trial on charges that he possessed child pornography and traveled to Honduras for sex with children during missionary trips.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Keith Pesto ordered the Rev. Joseph Maurizio Jr., 69, detained after prosecution evidence contrasted sharply with character witnesses who on yesterday described the defendant as “priestly, faithful and committed to helping.”
“What you’re describing is Jekyll and Hyde, Father Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” Pesto said, before noting he can’t let “Jekyll go free and detain Mr. Hyde.”
Maurizio has been jailed since Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested him yesterday. A criminal complaint alleges Maurizio gave boys candy and money so he could molest them — including performing a sex act on a 14-year-old in a chapel — or watch the boys have sex.
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