Diocese removes Belleville priest for alleged sex acts

A Roman Catholic diocese in the Illinois suburbs of St. Louis has removed a priest because of an allegation that he sexually abused a New Jersey minor in the 1970s, diocese officials announced Wednesday.

Officials with the Belleville, Ill., diocese said its Fitness Review Board recommended administrative leave for the Rev. Edward Balestrieri as parochial administrator of the St. Mary Parish in Sesser. The action came after the Trenton Diocese last week relayed an allegation of sexual misconduct with a minor while the priest was assigned in Asbury Park, N.J., in 1975 or 1976. Balestrieri is the first Belleville Diocese priest accused since the sex-abuse scandal emerged nationwide this year. The diocese created the review board to eliminate abusers from the clergy after a string of cases in the1990s.

The removal means the review board has heard credible evidence but will investigate further before recommending a final action to Bishop Wilton Gregory, said Kenneth York, chancellor of the Belleville Diocese.

Balestrieri, 71, is being monitored and questioned by church officials at an undisclosed location away from the rectory and is not available to speak publicly, York said.