EVANSVILLE (IN)
The Gleaner
By PHILIP ELLIOTT, Courier & Press staff 461-0783 or elliottp@courierpress.com
August 12, 2005
EVANSVILLE -- A Diocese of Evansville priest faces charges he sexually molested a 19-year-old mentally disabled man and could face more than 30 years in prison if convicted.
The Rev. Wilfred "Fred" Englert, 52, of Jasper, Ind., faces four counts of sexual battery and one count of deviant sexual conduct. He has been placed on paid administrative leave from his diocesan duties.
Indiana State Police say Englert, of Jasper's St. Joseph Catholic Church, befriended the accuser during the past year and repeatedly molested him from April to June. The accuser said the priest did so while they camped at Patoka Lake and in a residence in Dubois, Ind.
The accuser, who lives with his parents who have legal guardianship over him, called state police July 18 and the resulting investigation prompted police to arrest Englert on Thursday. He turned himself in at Dubois Circuit Court in Jasper, where he was arraigned. He later faced additional charges in Orange County, where Patoka Lake is located.