|
Sex Abuse Allegation Against Retired Priest — Former Pastor of St. Gertrude
The Missourian
November 13, 2017
http://www.emissourian.com/local_news/crime/sex-abuse-allegation-against-retired-priest-former-pastor-of-st/article_0b943828-c8bc-11e7-8f8d-23db8cac70d8.html
The Most Rev. Robert J. Carlson, Archbishop of St. Louis, reported he has received an allegation of sexual abuse of a minor against retired priest Rev. Dennis B. Zacheis.
The acts are alleged to have occurred while he was an associate pastor at St. Margaret Mary Alacoque Parish in Mehlville from 1975 to 1979. Father Zacheis denies the allegation.
Father Zacheis, known here locally as Father Dennis, served as pastor at St. Gertrude Parish in Krakow from 1994 to 2003.
Archbishop Carlson, in consultation with the Review Board of the Archdiocese of St. Louis, has decided for the sake of openness and transparency to make this known.
No details of the accusation were given and it’s unclear whether the accuser had involved the police.
Father Zacheis has been retired from ministry without priestly faculties since 2010, due to alleged irregularities in finances for which he was responsible as pastor of St. Anthony’s in Sullivan. He currently resides in a private residence.
In keeping with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, an announcement about this allegation has been made in the archdiocesan newspaper, The St. Louis Review, and in the parishes where Father Zacheis served.
Father Zacheis served as associate pastor at St. Mary Magdalen Parish in south St. Louis from 1979-85; Christ, Prince of Peace in Manchester from 1985-88; and St. Matthias in Lemay from 1988-92.
In addition to serving as pastor of St. Gertrude Parish, he also was pastor at St. Alban Roe in Wildwood from 2003-04 and St. Anthony in Sullivan from 2005-09.
Anyone with reports of abuse of a minor involving a member of the clergy or other church personnel should contact Sandra Price, executive director of the Office of Child and Youth Protection, at 314-792-7271, the Missouri Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline at 800-392-3738 and/or law enforcement officials.
|