“When a man who is supposed to represent the Church, and therefore Jesuschrist and God, and who allegedly made vows of chastity, hurts and humiliates girls in order to satisfy his own lust, he deserves castration“; that’s what journalist and news anchorman Joaquín López Dóriga stated during his radio program on Radio Fórmula, as he was briefing the audience on this case.
Guanajuato’s law enforcement authorities arrested a former Catholic priest, who used to be a spokesman for the Archdiocese of León, on Tuesday February 14. Jorge Raúl Villegas Chavez is accused of sexual abuse against a 15-year-old girl.
The events occurred at a Catholic girls’ school in Irapuato, where Villegas Chavez worked as a priest and offered “psychological therapy” to students with behavior problems.
According to Norma Nolasco, a human rights activist, the priest abused the child for three months.
Villegas worked in a well-known private school in Irapuato, although in 2014 he had been sued by a woman with whom he had a daughter. In fact, the priest accepted to be the girl’s father and was forced to provide food and economic support. In addition, the priest was allegedly suspended to perform his religious ministry.
In spite of this, Villegas somehow ended up working in that private school in Irapuato, where he supposedly gave guidance and psychological therapies to children with behavior problems.
Presumably, in one of those therapies which apparently were conducted behind closed doors, the priest took advantage of the situation and sexually abused a 15 year-old girl from Irapuato. After several tests carried out to the victim, the presumed criminal action of the priest was confirmed, an arrest warrant was issued against him.
Jorge Raúl Villegas Chavez, former Catholic priest, and spokesman for Leon’s Archdiocese (Photo: AM)
Sexual abuse cases in schools of Guanajuato
The Ministry of Education of Guanajuato (Secretaría de Educación de Guanajuato, SEG) has identified 16 cases of alleged sexual abuse in schools of the state, which would have been committed by teachers.
During 2015 and in the first half of 2016, eight school teachers were dismissed in the state, for sexual abuse accusations.
According to information from SEG, last year, 16 complaints were issued for sexual abuse committed by teaching staff, even though only eight of them proceeded in a court of law.
The other eight school teachers who were accused of sexual abuse, only received the corresponding disciplinary action, in response. However, it is not clear what are the parameters to determine if it is a minor crime or misdemeanor, that only requires a disciplinary action.
The educational institutions involved in these issues, are located in the following municipalities all over the state: Dolores Hidalgo, San Miguel de Allende, San Diego de la Unión, Tierra Blanca, León, Guanajuato, Romita, Juventino Rosas, Apaseo el Grande, Celaya, Irapuato and Salamanca.
The abuses reported were committed at different levels: preschool, elementary and high school (kinder, primaria, secundaria y preparatoria).
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