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Former after-school care assistant pleads guilty in sex case
By Phil Benson
PHOENIX (KPHO/KTVK) - A former after-school care assistant has pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual exploitation of a minor. Lawrence Amaral appeared in Maricopa County Superior Court Monday. He originally faced 10 counts after he was arrested in October 2014. A judge set sentencing for Thursday, Sept. 8, at 8:30 a.m. Amaral worked as an after-school care assistant at St. Louis the King Catholic School. He was taken into custody after deputies say several hundred images of child pornography were found on his home computer. The sheriff's office says it was an undercover investigation that eventually led to his arrest. According to police paperwork, Amaral admitted to downloading and viewing child pornography for the last three years. The images depicted children ages 3 to 14. He had worked for 5 1/2 years at the church's after-school program, where he had direct contact with children. The Diocese released a statement at the time of his arrest saying in part that they have no knowledge of any physical or sexual abuse of any minor at the after-school program. They also held meetings for parents so they could address the allegations and answer what questions they could about the situation. A spokesperson for the Diocese said that they do perform background checks on their employees, including fingerprinting. Amaral cleared those checks. Amaral told deputies he never committed any hands-on offense. He said he only looked at the images. He also told them he was sick and needed help. Amaral was placed on unpaid leave pending the outcome of the investigation. His wife, who also works at the school, resigned.
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