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	Bishop: Romance Not Found between Priest, Killer Private Investigator Hired by Austin Diocese Could Not Confirm Claims of Convicted Murderer. By Jeremy Schwartz American-Statesman June 11, 2009 http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/2009/06/11/0611euresti.html An Austin Diocese investigation could not confirm allegations that slain priest Jesse Euresti and his convicted killer had a romantic relationship, Bishop Gregory Aymond said Wednesday. Manuel Martin Torres Saldaña said he and Euresti had a sexual relationship and that he stabbed the 69-year-old priest to death after a late-night quarrel. Torres Saldaña lived in Euresti's home in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, to which Euresti planned to retire this summer. Euresti's family members have denied that the men had a romantic relationship and said that Torres Saldaña served as a caretaker when Euresti was in Austin, where he was the pastor of Cristo Rey Catholic Church. In April, Aymond promised an investigation, saying it was important for community members and parishioners to know the truth. "I am unable to verify the truth of Torres Saldaña's statement," Aymond said in a statement Wednesday. "Therefore, it is appropriate that we remember in gratitude Father Euresti's 44 years of priestly ministry." A private investigator spent almost a month looking into Torres Saldaña's claims, diocese spokesman Christian Gonzalez said. Diocese officials did not release the investigation report and declined further comment. Family members said they welcomed the investigation's conclusion. "We already knew it wasn't true, so there was no news to us," said Euresti's sister, Rachel Rios. "But of course we wanted it to be known. We need to let him rest in peace." Euresti went missing after driving to his Nuevo Laredo home on March 31. A friend found blood stains throughout his garage, and police mounted a search for Euresti and Torres Saldaña. The trail ran cold until Torres Saldaña contacted Euresti's family members asking for money in exchange for telling them where he had dumped Euresti's body. Torres Saldaña was arrested when he went to an electronics store in the southern Mexican state of Chiapas to pick up a money wire from the family. Police say he planned to slip across the border into Guatemala. Several neighbors in Euresti's downtown Nuevo Laredo neighborhood said they did not suspect a romantic relationship between the men, but that Euresti never told them that he was a priest and the pair presented themselves as uncle and nephew. Less than a month after he was arrested, Torres Saldaña was sentenced to 371/2 years in prison. Although Torres Saldaña could have received 50 years in prison, the judge who sentenced him said that he was given the maximum punishment allowable under Mexican law because he had pleaded guilty and asked for a summary judgment. Contact: 912-2942 or jschwartz@statesman.com
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