Houston, Texas, Sep 12, 2018 / 16:59 pm
A priest of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston was arrested Tuesday in connection with allegations that he sexually abused at least two children decades ago.
Police in Conroe, Texas have reported that the priest has been charged with four counts of indecency to children. While stationed at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Conroe, Father Manuel La Rosa-Lopez was accused in 2001 of kissing and inappropriately touching a 16 year-old girl.
The priest was permitted to return to ministry after the allegation was reviewed by the Texas authorities and the archdiocesan review board in 2003, which allowed the priest to return to ministry in 2004. Reportedly, the women moved back in 2010 and saw that the priest had been transferred to St. John Fisher parish in Richmond, Texas.
After contacting the archdiocese, the woman was referred to counseling services and briefly met with Father La Rosa-Lopez, who offered his apologies, according to Click 2 Houston.