Group Warns About Defrocked Priest in Fairfax

Tag: usa

By ASHLEY E. BROWN

SNAP: Former priest accused of abusing children

As the Catholic church reels from the latest allegations of sex abuse worldwide, an abuse victims advocacy group is warning about a defrocked priest believed to be living in a Fairfax mobile home community.

The group, Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) Virginia, said it has determined that former priest Eugene Vollmer has taken up residence in the Waples Mills Mobile Park.

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According to SNAP, Pope John Paul II removed Vollmer from the priesthood in 2004 after "credible" sex abuse allegations against him surfaced while he was with the church in New York.

Citing a grand jury report on the case, SNAP also said Volmer acknowledged he had molested at least 12 victims in New York. However, Vollmer was never convicted of any sex abuse crimes because the statute of limitations in the cases had expired. Vollmer's case is mentioned and documented on the watchdog site BishopAccountability.org.

SNAP offered few details as to how they came to believe Vollmer is now living in Fairfax, but the group passed out flyers in the mobile park community Tuesday in an effort to seek more information on Vollmer.

"We want to warn the neighbors," said SNAP Virginia Director Becky Ianni, "Because we feel like he could still be a danger to children."

"I want to implore anyone who has been harmed by a member of the clergy, particularly Vollmer, to come forward and get help," said Ianni.

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