DETROIT _ As part of her investigation into sexual abuse by Catholic clergy, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced Friday criminal sexual conduct charges against five priests in Michigan.
"Some of these clergy ... preyed on young children," Nessel said at a news conference of the five men who were priests at the time of the abuse. She said the five cases were the "tip of the iceberg" as investigators continue to track down hundreds of tips of abuse by Catholic priests.
In some of the incidents, the Catholic priests mixed their sexual activity with references to Catholic beliefs or committed the acts during Catholic rituals such as confession, according to affidavits. In some cases, the priests plied children with drugs such as cocaine, marijuana and alcohol before sexually assaulting them, allege prosecutors and police.
According to Nessel, the five charged are:
_ Timothy Michael Crowley, 69, of the Lansing Diocese. He was charged in Washtenaw County with four felony counts of Criminal Sexual Conduct (CSC) in the first degree, and four felony counts of CSC in the second degree. Crowley, who once was a priest at St. Thomas Rectory in Ann Arbor, was arrested Thursday in Tempe, Ariz.
Crowly is accused of fellatio and sexual penetration with a 10-year-old boy, plying him with alcohol and cigarettes. He threatened to kill the boy if he reported the incidents, said the affidavit.
"On multiple occasions, Crowley provided JOHN DOE with cigarettes and alcohol and forced JOHN DOE to watch pornography depicting homosexual sex," read the affidavit. "Crowley would masturbate himself in JOHN DOE's presence."
While serving as an altar boy, the boy would stay the night with Crowley in his bed, according to the affidavit.
_ Neil Kalina, 63, Archdiocese of Detroit. He was charged in Macomb County with one felony count of criminal sexual conduct in the fourth degree. Kalina, who was a priest at St. Kiernan Catholic Church in Shelby Township, was arrested Thursday in Littlerock, Calif.
On at least four occasions, a boy between the ages of 12 and 14 "spent the night with Kalina in the rectory at St. Kieran's," said the affidavit. "On each occasion, Kalina provided John Doe with cocaine or marijuana, which John Doe ingested."
_ Vincent DeLorenzo, 80, Lansing Diocese. He was charged in Genesee County with three felony counts of criminal sexual conduct in the first degree and three felony counts of criminal sexual conduct in the second degree, a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. DeLorenzo was a priest at Holy Redeemer Church in Burton and was arrested Thursday in Marion County, Fla.
On many occasions, DeLorenzo would first pray and then insert his finger into the anus of a boy under the age of 13, penetrating him digitally, said an affidavit.
"In 2002, DeLorenzo admitted to sexually abusing a minor boy in the 1980s," said an affidavit. "The Catholic Church placed him on restricted ministry, but still allowed him to remain within the Catholic Church.
_ Patrick Casey, 55, Archdiocese of Detroit. He was charged in Wayne County with one felony count of criminal sexual conduct. Casey, who was a priest at St. Theodore of Canterbury Parish in Westland, was arrested Thursday in Oak Park, Mich. He also has served in Canton. According to an affidavit, Casey is accused of engaging in sexual acts, including oral sex, with a man in his 20s whom he was counseling during confession.
One day in 2013 during the confession, "Casey approached John Doe and told him to stand up. Casey then began massaging John Doe's genitalia before performing oral sex on him," said an affidavit.
_ Jacob Vellian, 84, Kalamazoo Diocese. He was charged with two counts of Rape, a maximum sentence of life in prison. Vellian was a priest at St. John the Evangelist Parish, Benton Harbor, and now lives in Kerala, India. Nessel said they're seeking his extradition from India.
According to an affidavit, Vellian penetrated with a finger a girl under the age of 16 in the 1970s. During one incident, said the affidavit, Vellian touched the girl's "breasts underneath her bra and clothing, explained that he was praying for her, and was 'trying to fill (her) soul with the Holy Spirit.'"
The affidavit says Vellian fondled and penetrated the girl before her 16th birthday several times before she was 16.
During one occasion, Vellian touched her "breasts underneath her bra and clothing, explained that he was praying for her, and was 'trying to fill (her) soul with the Holy Spirit,'" said the affidavit.
Also, the professional educationally limited counselor's license of Lawrence Ventline, a priest with the Archdiocese of Detroit, was summarily suspended by state officials with LARA last week and the attorney general has filed an administrative licensing complaint against him, Nessel said.
Contacted by email, the Archdiocese of Detroit did not immediately comment.
Nessel cautioned that the men charged are "innocent until proven guilty by a court of law."
Nessel urged people who are victims or may have information about abuse to contact them. She was joined by several attorneys on her staff pursuing justice for victims.
"We are your voice," Nessel said. "We are here for you.
"We will continue to investigate each and every tip that we receive," she said.
Nessel said her office is reviewing hundreds of thousands of pages of documents and have received 450 tips. She said they have reviewed so far only about 5 to 10% of the information they have received.
