Posted on 02/12/2005 4:39:16 AM PST by Born Conservative
TOBYHANNA (PA)-- At least two computers from the St. Ann's church rectory contain images of child pornography, according to Pocono Mountain Regional Police, who continue to search for illicit images.
A visiting priest has admitted to police that he downloaded and viewed pornographic images, according to an affidavit of probable cause. But detectives are still trying to determine "what's on a computer, and is that illegal, and if it is, who's looking at it," Detective Sgt. Jeff Bowman said earlier this week.
"The investigation is far from complete," he said.
On Jan. 17, after tips funneled into police headquarters, two detectives began digging into child porn allegations at the rectory. The parish priest, the Rev. Michael Kloton, had already contacted authorities about the allegations, according to the affidavit of probable cause.
A man brought in to clean up the hard drives of the rectory computers discovered images of young men engaged in sexual acts on a computer used by the church secretary, the priest told detectives. Father Kloton agreed to a voluntary search, and detectives removed the computer a day later.
The state police Computer Crime Task Force discovered about 10 images of children under 18 engaged in sexual acts or in simulated sex acts. Police then received permission to confiscate all of the rectory computers, which are linked on a common server, along with Father Kloton's personal laptop computer.
On Jan. 20, a full forensic examination found one computer with images of child pornography. After returning the others to the rectory, detectives were given another computer to search -- this one used by a visiting priest.
Eleven days later, the visiting priest, the Rev. Gabriel Tetherow, traveled to Pocono Mountain police headquarters and admitted to downloading and viewing images of child pornography on the secretary's computer, "and that he also used the computer from upstairs located in his room" at the rectory, according to the affidavit.
He told police there "could be" images of child pornography on the computer that had been in his room.
Detectives obtained a search warrant Feb. 2 to check that computer's hard drive for illegal images.
So far, no arrests have been made.
Acting Diocese of Scranton spokesman Bill Genello said the diocese is fully cooperating with Pocono Mountain detectives.
Contacted at St. Ann's rectory, Father Kloton referred all questions to the diocese.
"I'm not at liberty to say anything at this point," he said.
Nice how the article burries the fact it is homosexual sex at issue.
Tetherow... Fr. John Perricone's 'buddy'.
A Diocese of Scranton priest was charged Thursday with downloading and viewing images of child pornography while staying at St. Ann's Church rectory in Tobyhanna.
The Rev. Virgil Bradley Tetherow, also known as Father Gabriel, 1219 Jackson St., Scranton, was arraigned Thursday morning before Magisterial District Judge Clancy Dennis on 10 counts each of sexual abuse of children and criminal use of a communication facility, both third-degree felonies.
The arrest came exactly two months after Pocono Mountain Regional Police began investigating child porn allegations surrounding the Tobyhanna church rectory. A man brought in to clean up the hard drives of the rectory computers discovered images of young men engaged in sexual acts on a computer used by the church secretary, the parish priest, the Rev. Michael Kloton, told detectives.
Father Kloton agreed to a voluntary search, and detectives removed the computer a day later.
Police initially discovered more than 10 images of children between the ages of 10 to 14 engaged in sexual acts or simulated sex acts on the secretary's computer. Days later, on Jan. 20, the parish priest turned over another computer suspected of containing illegal images, this one kept in the room used by Father Tetherow.
A founder of the Servants Minor of St. Francis, a traditional Catholic congregation created in 1999, Father Tetherow had been staying as a guest at the St. Ann's rectory since January 2004. The congregation, approved by the Diocese of Scranton, listed its headquarters as Father Tetherow's Scranton address.
The Servants Minor group collapsed in November 2003. Father Tetherow, 40, was then never given an assignment within the Diocese of Scranton, said spokesman Bill Genello.
On Jan. 31, Father Tetherow drove to Pocono Mountain police headquarters and admitted to downloading child porn from January to December 2004 on the secretary's computer as well as the one in his rectory room , according to the criminal complaint.
A search executed days later on the computer from Father Tetherow's room uncovered more than 10 images of children between the ages of 9 to 13 engaged in sexual acts or simulated acts.
He had been accessing the Internet with the user name "Father Gabriel," according to the complaint. Earlier this winter, Father Tetherow had been working at St. Anthony of Padua in West Orange, N.J., brought in by friend and pastor the Rev. John Perricone.
"I knew him to be an outstanding person," Father Perricone told the Newark Star-Ledger. "All of us are very, very shocked."
Father Tetherow was introduced to the congregation in early January, said St. Anthony's member Mary Brooks. Weeks later, parishioners were told Father Tetherow had been called back to the Diocese of Scranton.
"No one has said a word since," said Mrs. Brooks. "He was a very holy priest, he appeared. He was very liked, he gave very nice sermons. I find this very difficult to comprehend."
Mr. Genello said the Diocese of Scranton cooperated fully with police during the investigation.
"That a priest would be accused of having any involvement with child pornography is completely contrary to the life he has been called to embrace," the Most Rev. Joseph F. Martino, bishop of Scranton, said in a prepared statement. "The church will not tolerate such behavior."
Judge Dennis scheduled an April 1 preliminary hearing for Father Tetherow.
I just wrote to the newspaper writer to see if there was any courtroom followup to this case. We'll see if he responds. I'll ping you to any reply I receive - which I'll post on this thread.
This is very disturbing and sick.
Makes you kinda wonder about Perricone's leanings as well.
Anyone who attempts to get a thrill from watching pics of naked same sex youth is a same sex addicted pedophile...or a predatory (going after the weaker more vulnerable) homosexual pedophile. Period.
Just for the record, Fr. Tetherow was guilty of downloading child pornography at St. Ann in Tobyhanna. He confessed to the crime and plead guilty to a lesser charge. He was given a suspended sentence only because he agreed to spend his sentence at a monastery run by Fr. Philip Ferrara (who went by the religious name of Fr. Angelus)at Our Lady of Solitude Monastery where Fr. Ferrara was the only monk.
Fr. Ferrara became infamous after he was later convicted of sexually molesting a teenage boy and sentenced to prison in Pennsylvania. Fr. Ferrara had great things to say about Fr. Tetherow and had been his principle character references in the past.
Fr. Tetherow ended up at St. Ann in Tobyhanna after Bishop Martino suppressed Tetherow’s Franciscan community only a month after becoming the bishop of Scranton because of rumors of homosexuality. Fr. Tetherow claims it was because he was “traditional” but that is not true. Fr. Tetherow then went to St. Ann in Tobyhanna at his own request because his long friendship with his homosexual buddy, Fr. Michael Kloton, was the pastor. Fr. Tetherow and Fr. Kloton got together at St. Ann’s long before Fr. Tetherow came to live there and I have seen proof of this fact.
The staff at St. Ann, even before Fr. Tetherow came to live there, had made a formal complaint to Bishop Timlin about the pornography on the computers of Fr. Kloton but nothing was done by the diocese except persecute the accusers. The problem with Fr. Tetherow that caused concern was not his habitual use of pornography but his taste for illegal child pornography. Tetherow admitted to a long addiction to pornography but claimed that his fall into depression and alcohol abuse after the suppression of his Franciscan community by Bishop Martino caused him to become careless and get involved with illegal forms of pornography.
How do I know all this? I initially believed Fr. Tetherow’s version of the story and defended him until all the lies started to come unraveled. I did my own investigation and was shown direct evidence of the investigation. But everyone should have known better. Even before Tetherow became a religious his jobs and areas of secular interest were exclusively in areas that are attractive to the gay community like body building competition for Mr. Oregon, serving as a waiter in five star restaurant, etc., etc.
Tetherow is still passing himself off as a persecuted victim to traditional Catholics. Anyone who would trust their spiritual direction to this manipulating sexual pervert had best be warned.
Downey
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