St. Louis Post-Dispatch
ST. LOUIS • A Roman Catholic priest from St. Louis, the Rev. William F. Vatterott, was indicted Wednesday on one federal child pornography charge, the U.S. attorney’s office said.
The indictment says Vatterott, 36, possessed at least two images of an unidentified nude boy on his computer between June 2010 and June 2011. He is expected to appear in federal court late this week or early next week. If convicted, he could face up to 10 years in prison.
His attorney could not be reached for comment.
Vatterott was ordained in 2003. He was associate pastor at Holy Infant Church in Ballwin, then became pastor of St. Cecilia Parish, at 5418 Louisiana Avenue, in 2008. He was placed on administrative leave effective June 29, 2011, after a complaint was filed with the Ballwin police.
In a statement released at the time, Monsignor Richard Hanneke, vicar of priests, said Vatterott was placed on leave after two teenagers reported incidents of inappropriate correspondence. Vatterott was also accused of involvement in underage drinking and “other inappropriate behaviors.”
In a statement Wednesday, the Archdiocese of St. Louis said it “has fully cooperated with the investigation conducted by law enforcement and the U.S. Attorney’s office.”
The archdiocese said reports of misconduct with a minor against any church personnel should be directed to Phil Hengen, the director of child and youth protection, at 314-792-7704, the Missouri Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline, at 800-392-3737, or police.
Robert Patrick covers federal courts and federal law enforcement for the Post-Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter: @rxpatrick.
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St. Louis priest charged with possession of child pornography
St. Louis Review
Father William Vatterott
Father William F. Vatterott was indicted April 24 with possession of child pornography.
A federal grand jury returned the indictment April 24, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri. Father Vatterott, 36, was charged with possession of child pornography between June 2010 and June 2011. He is expected to appear in federal court in the next week.
U.S. Attorney Richard Callahan noted that the St. Louis Archdiocese cooperated with the investigation.
If convicted, the charge carries a maximum penalty of ten years in prison and/or fines up to $250,000.
Father Vatterott, who in 2007 was named associate pastor and later became pastor of St. Cecilia Parish in south St. Louis, and previously was associate pastor at Holy Infant Parish in Ballwin, has been on administrative leave since June 2011, when the archdiocese was made aware of the allegations.A statement from the archdiocese noted that it has fully cooperated with the investigation conducted by law enforcement and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
On June 27, 2011, the archdiocese learned of complaints of inappropriate conduct involving Father Vatterott. Specifically, two teenagers reported incidents of inappropriate electronic communications received from Father Vatterott. Additionally, one teenager, who was 18 years old at the time, reported an incident involving underage drinking and other inappropriate behaviors. None of the reported complaints involved physical contact or solicitation of any sort.
The archdiocese encourages all persons with reports of misconduct with a minor involving a member of the clergy or other church personnel to contact Phil Hengen, the Director of Child and Youth Protection at (314)792-7704 or the Missouri Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline at (800) 392-3737 or law enforcement officials.