Father Vaillancourt has denied any wrongdoing and indicated that he will cooperate with any investigation into the matter, the Diocese stated.

In accordance with diocesan policy, Father Robert Vaillancourt has been placed on temporary administrative leave pending an investigation into an allegation of sexual abuse of a minor girl in the 1980s, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland announced Monday, July 5 in a news release.

Father Vaillancourt is currently the pastor of St. Brendan the Navigator Parish (Our Lady of Good Hope Church, Camden; St. Bernard Church, Rockland; St. Francis of Assisi Church, Belfast; St. Mary of the Isles Churches on Islesboro, Vinalhaven and North Haven).

Father Vaillancourt has denied any wrongdoing and indicated that he will cooperate with any investigation into the matter, the Diocese stated.

“The temporary administrative leave is not a presumption of guilt or a result of suspected wrongdoing, but is the protocol followed by the diocese….