MINNESOTA
KARE
[with video]
Adrienne Broaddus, KARE May 21, 2014
MINNEAPOLIS – Years have passed but the memories haven’t faded. A man, now in his 30s, told investigators in Dakota County he was sexually abused by former catholic priest Francis Hoefgen from the spring of 1989 to the fall of 1991. Wednesday, Hoefgen was charged with two counts of criminal sexual conduct in the first degree in Dakota County.
The victim, a former altar boy, said the repeated abuse started when he was nine and ended when he was 12. He told investigators he was inappropriately touched and penetrated. After suffering in silence, police said the victim came forward in November of 2013.
“It is not surprising that the victim in this case waited over 20 years to report this matter to the Hastings Police Department,” Prosecutor James Backstrom said. “Most child victims of sexual crimes repress the troubling memories of their abuse for many years.”
Backstrom is asking other victims to come forward.
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