DAVID EDWARDS
19 AUG 2015
A former New Jersey priest who is accused of raping a 15-year-old boy said this week that the teen had “evil” thoughts and “wanted” to have sex.
Earlier this year, Max Rojas Ramirez filed a lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Newark alleging that he had been raped by Rev. Manuel Gallo Espinoza in a rectory bedroom at the age of 15.
Ramirez told NJ Advance Media that he did not know that he was speaking to Father Espinoza when he admitted in confessional that he was confused about his sexuality, which he said resulted from being molested by a male cousin at the age of 8.
“I was looking for guidance and trying to figure out all these things, and eventually I came to tell him about the attraction I had toward guys,” he recalled.
Not long after that, the priest contacted Ramirez and requested to see him in person, and then refused to take him home, insisting that he spend the night in the rectory.
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