A priest in the Buffalo Diocese has voluntarily removed himself from ministry while the Diocese follows protocols for an investigation.
Father Joseph Gatto has been serving at St Benedict's parish in Eggertsville
as well as St Leo's, Christ The King, Ss. Peter & Paul, St. Aloysius Gonzaga, and Infant of Prague.
Gatto was the subject of emotional testimony in federal bankruptcy court last week. During victim impact statements, Tracy Waring testified that her son Devin's suicide in 2017 was connected to Father Gatto.
Waring said her son, who was 18 at the time, took his life, hours after he went to confession with Father Gatto.
"Shock overtook me when I understood the gravity of this," Nandor Forgach, told WBEN. He is a parishioner at St Benedict's.
He added, "While I'm glad he took a voluntary leave, why did it have to be voluntary? Why wasn't there immediate action from the Diocese?"
Forgach went further and said this shows that the Diocese is not serious about transparency.
"They haven't learned a lesson," he said after years of clergy abuse cases. Calling it, "business as usual."
The Diocese is now gathering more information about Father Gatto in order to conduct an investigation or take additional action.
It is not the first time allegations have been made against Father Gatto, who was the former leader at Christ the King Seminary. He was previously placed on leave, but former Bishop Richard Malone reinstated him in 2019.
"I don't see how these men, who are are reinstating priests like Father Gatto, are going to lead us out of this. The rot is deeper," said Forgach. "And I think this is the tip of the iceberg. These Shepards of God are not living up to their vocations."
The organization Save Our Buffalo Churches is currently asking the Vatican to investigate Diocesan leadership, including Bishop Michael Fisher.
Forgach urges local parishioners to sign a petition for an investigation by the Holy See. Click here for a link.