(WWJ) A former priest has been charged with sexually assaulting a teenage boy in metro Detroit in the 1970s.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, who is investigating sex abuse within the seven Catholic dioceses across the state, said 78-year-old Gary Berthiaume was arrested Tueada at his home in Warrendale, Illinois
He will face extradition to Farmington, Michigan, where a charge of second-degree criminal sexual conduct, a 15-year felony, was authorized last week.
The victim, who was 14 years old at the time, reported the assault took place in August 1977 at the rectory of Our Lady of Sorrows in Farmington, where Berthiaume was a priest of the Archdiocese of Detroit.
Nessel's office said Berthiaume was arrested in 1977 for the sexual assault of two other minors in Michigan. After serving a sentence in the Oakland County Jail, he was able to remain a priest, but was transferred to the Diocese of Cleveland, Ohio.
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He was moved again in 1987 to the Diocese of Joliet in Indiana.
“My office’s investigation into clergy abuse will continue to receive, review and act upon credible allegations of abuse on behalf of the many victims who have come forward,” Nessel said. “Criminal sexual conduct at any level must not be tolerated, and we must ensure justice is served to those who assault others – particularly those authority figures and people in powerful positions who prey on the weak and vulnerable.”
The Michigan Department of the Attorney General seized 1.5 million paper documents and 3.5 million electronic documents through search warrants executed in October 2018. Including Berthiaume, the AG's investigation has resulted in criminal charges being filed against 11 individuals with ties to the Catholic Church.
Anyone who was abused by clergy in Michigan, or who has information about abuse to call the tip line at 844-324-3374. Tips can also be submitted online at this link.