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  Armand Ventre

United Press International
July 6, 1985

The Reverend Armand Ventre, pastor of Our Lady of Good Help Church in Mapleville, has become the third Rhode Island priest in the past year to be charged with sexual assault.

Ventre, 53, was indicted on charges of second-degree sexual assault upon three boys at the church rectory and the priest's summer home in Glocester between 1981 and 1984.

The grand jury returned the indictment Friday, said a spokeswoman for the state attorney general's office.

"This is the third incident involving a priest in the diocese in the past year," said Richard Lapierre, a member of the church's pastoral team. Similar charges have been filed against priests in Bristol and Lincoln.

Ventre was investigated by another grand jury in April, but that panel declined to indict him on sexual assault charges. State police obtained additional information about the case and re-submitted the evidence to another grand jury.

The Reverend Robert Evans at the diocese office in Providence said he did not know if Ventre would be allowed to remain on active duty while the case was pending.

Ventre has served at Our Lady of Good Help Church for the past four years. He is scheduled to be arraigned July 24 in Providence.

 
 

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