A 76-year-old man, Luis Jesus Barajas, who used to be a priest but was stripped of his clerical status many years ago, recently got arrested for allegedly sexually abusing a 15-year-old cancer patient during an unsanctioned blessing ceremony in Ohio. This incident occurred on October 10 when he was asked to pray with the girl due to her illness, and it's not the first time he's been accused of such actions.
According to authorities, the defendant was taken to the girl's home in Westlake, a suburb of Cleveland, to conduct the ceremony. Her family had heard about Barajas because he had been performing spiritual ceremonies for Spanish speakers in the area. Witnesses say that during the blessing, Barajas touched the juvenile inappropriately, using blankets and clothing to conceal his actions, making several people uncomfortable.
Right from the start, those present at the ceremony found it suspicious. Westlake Police Capt. Gerald Vogel said that many witnesses felt that something was amiss during the blessings. Barajas had been previously sanctioned by the Catholic Church over three decades ago due to alleged child sexual abuse.
Barajas was ordained in 1982 and served as a priest in Pennsylvania for several years before he left for Colombia under a cloud of suspicion, with concerns about his behavior reported to the Diocese of Harrisburg. He returned to the U.S. and has been in the Lake Erie region of Ohio for the past few months, providing blessings and other religious services to families. Police suspect there may be other victims.
Notably, Barajas was arrested in Virginia in 2019 on a felony misconduct charge with a minor, but that case didn't lead to prosecution. On October 20, a Catholic priest reported the unconventional blessing he witnessed, leading to Barajas' arrest on October 23 at a residence in Elyria, Ohio. On Monday, he was granted a $250,000 bond, and due to his financial situation, he was provided with a court-appointed attorney.
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