Bishop Timothy James Hallows of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) in Utah has been held without bond after being charged with eight counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, according to the Deseret News.
Hallows allegedly admitted to using Skype as a means for distributing child pornography to investigators. While Hallows did not know how many images of sexual abuse of a minor he owned, a police affidavit says he “estimated the number’s over 100.”
Investigators say the number was higher than that. KSTU reported that, according to the probable cause affidavit, “On scene during forensics, investigations located thousands of images of pornography, including many images of child sexual abuse.”
“We know that there are multiple images that he has in his possession at the time of his arrest, and that may mean there are multiple victims,” said Captain Taylor West of the Davis County Sheriff’s Office in Utah. “We are still further investigating who the victims of this case are.”
Police and state that Hallows said the children in the images are “not real” and that he “provided several incidents of justification or rationalization for the conduct.”
Hallows also refused to submit to polygraph examination regarding “hands on sexual contact with young children.” As part of his role as Bishop, overseeing the Wellington Ward in Kaysville, Hallows took children on camping trips and took pictures of them.
However, according to a written request recommending that Hallows be incarcerated without bail, Hallows allegedly made “several concerning statements that led investigators to believe he has had sexual contact with children.”
Hallows claimed not to have had long term sexual contact with children. But when police said they believed he had engaged in the practice, Hallows allegedly said “Uh-huh” while nodding his head.
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“The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has no tolerance for abuse of any kind, including child pornography, and teaches its members and leaders that such behavior is offensive to God and to His Church,” said a written statement from an LDS spokesman. “When local leaders learned of these allegations, this individual was immediately removed from any position that would place him in close contact with youth or children.”
Serious actions were also leveled against a retired Catholic priest in Boise, Idaho on October 19, according to KBOI.
William Thomas Faucher was dismissed by the Vatican after he was sentenced to 25 years in prison for possessing and distributing child pornography. Defrocking Faucher is “serious and unappealable,” said the Vatican.
“The letter from Archbishop Giacomo Morandi, secretary to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, states that Faucher’s case was presented to Pope Francis after which the Pope decreed that Faucher is involuntarily laicized (removed) from the clerical state,” read a statement from the Diocese of Boise obtained by KTVB. “Faucher opposed the laicization, exercising his right of defense through a canonical advocate who presented his case to the Vatican.”
Online chat logs showed shown as evidence during Faucher’s December 2018 hearing showed that he was in contact with a child pornography source in Brazil. “I want you to send me more of young boys and even infants,” Faucher wrote.
Faucher will not be eligible for parole during his incarceration.
*see full story by NewsWeek