BishopAccountability.org
	Westerly Church Deacon Charged with Indecent Exposure By Chris Keegan Westerly Sun August 17, 2011 http://www.thewesterlysun.com/news_now/westerly-church-deacon-charged-with-indecent-exposure/article_ecc826a6-c855-11e0-a71a-001cc4c03286.html A deacon at a local Roman Catholic church has been removed from his job, following allegations that he exposed himself to passing motorists on Interstate 95 last week. Rhode Island State Police charged Robert G. Alessio, 70, of 109 Quannicut Road, Westerly, with disorderly conduct - indecent exposure on Friday, after troopers responded to the weigh station near Exit 4 in Richmond. Cpl. Brian Montminy said police received several calls from motorists about a man allegedly masturbating in the woods. Alessio had stopped his car at the weigh station and was alone, he said. "You could see him from the parking area, pants down and self-exposed," Montminy said. Alessio is the former business manager and permanent deacon at Immaculate Conception Church on High Street, and has been working at St. Clare Church in Misquamicut for about a month. Father Ken Suibielski, who heads St. Clare's, deferred comment to Mike Guilfoyle, spokesman for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence. Guilfoyle acknowledged Alessio has been removed from his post at the church and released a prepared statement from the Diocese. "The news that another permanent deacon of the Diocese of Providence has been arrested for allegedly engaging in illegal and immoral activity is a source of profound sadness for me and for the entire church in the Diocese," Bishop Thomas J. Tobin said in the statement. "This situation will be handled promptly in accordance with the strict norms of the law of the Church. At the same time, I will pray for healing and peace for Deacon Alessio, his family and friends, and all the members of the parishes where he has served." Alessio was arraigned Friday at the Hope Valley barracks and released. He is scheduled to appear in Fourth Division District Court on Aug. 31. A woman who picked up the phone at Alessio's home this morning declined comment.
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