METUCHEN (NJ)
NJ.com [Iselin, NJ]
October 28, 2026
By Eric Conklin
Two men are suing the Diocese of Metuchen, alleging they were sexually abused as children by a priest who once faced charges for molesting a boy from Middlesex Borough.
The men allege they were sexually assaulted multiple times by Juan Andres de Jorge Garcia Reyes.
Jorge served at the Shrine Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament in Raritan and ran Clairvaux House, a Catholic retreat for boys. He also led the Society of Jesus Christ the Priest, a Spanish religious order.
The lawsuit, filed Oct. 20 in Somerset County Superior Court, names the diocese, the church and the religious order as defendants. The men seek monetary damages, alleging the organizations gave Jorge unrestricted access to them.
Anthony Kearns, a spokesperson for the diocese, said Jorge was removed from the diocese in the 1990s. He declined to comment further, saying the organization had not been served with the lawsuit.
The religious order did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The lawsuit identifies the men only as M.P. and M.M.
Jorge allegedly abused M.P. beginning in 1989. When M.P. was 12, he attended social events at the church, where he played soccer, watched violent movies and ate meals with about 15 to 20 other boys, the lawsuit states.
Jorge, who led the gatherings, brought M.P. into his office multiple times and sexually assaulted him, the lawsuit states. During the meetings, Jorge also allegedly told him that “girls are bad” and “not to have a girlfriend.”
Jorge allegedly first assaulted M.M. in 1991. At the time, M.M. was a student at the Shoreless Lake School in New Brunswick and lived at Clairvaux House, the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit, filed Oct. 20 in Somerset County Superior Court, names the diocese, the church and the religious order as defendants. The men seek monetary damages, alleging the organizations gave Jorge unrestricted access to them.
Anthony Kearns, a spokesperson for the diocese, said Jorge was removed from the diocese in the 1990s. He declined to comment further, saying the organization had not been served with the lawsuit.
The religious order did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The lawsuit identifies the men only as M.P. and M.M.
Jorge allegedly abused M.P. beginning in 1989. When M.P. was 12, he attended social events at the church, where he played soccer, watched violent movies and ate meals with about 15 to 20 other boys, the lawsuit states.
Jorge, who led the gatherings, brought M.P. into his office multiple times and sexually assaulted him, the lawsuit states. During the meetings, Jorge also allegedly told him that “girls are bad” and “not to have a girlfriend.”
Jorge allegedly first assaulted M.M. in 1991. At the time, M.M. was a student at the Shoreless Lake School in New Brunswick and lived at Clairvaux House, the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit, filed Oct. 20 in Somerset County Superior Court, names the diocese, the church and the religious order as defendants. The men seek monetary damages, alleging the organizations gave Jorge unrestricted access to them.
Anthony Kearns, a spokesperson for the diocese, said Jorge was removed from the diocese in the 1990s. He declined to comment further, saying the organization had not been served with the lawsuit.
The religious order did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The lawsuit identifies the men only as M.P. and M.M.
Jorge allegedly abused M.P. beginning in 1989. When M.P. was 12, he attended social events at the church, where he played soccer, watched violent movies and ate meals with about 15 to 20 other boys, the lawsuit states.
Jorge, who led the gatherings, brought M.P. into his office multiple times and sexually assaulted him, the lawsuit states. During the meetings, Jorge also allegedly told him that “girls are bad” and “not to have a girlfriend.”
Jorge allegedly first assaulted M.M. in 1991. At the time, M.M. was a student at the Shoreless Lake School in New Brunswick and lived at Clairvaux House, the lawsuit states.
The assaults allegedly happened inside Jorge’s personal quarters at the Clairvaux House, where he summoned M.M. for private confession sessions, the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit claims Jorge gave M.M. preferential treatment, including providing him a larger bedroom than the other boys. It also alleges Jorge and other priests provided him with alcohol at church gatherings.
Jorge also allegedly forced M.M. to wear a cilice, described in the lawsuit as a “belt of nails.”
The lawsuit comes about three decades after Jorge was accused of sexually abusing a boy from Middlesex Borough.
Jorge was charged in November 1993 with first-degree sexual assault and second-degree sexual contact, the Star-Ledger reported. He was 36 at the time.
A grand jury declined to indict Jorge in May 1994, and the case was dismissed, court records show. Jorge could not be reached for comment.
The current lawsuit was filed more than three decades after the alleged abuse.
Rebecca Kimmel, a New York-based attorney for the men, said she filed the complaint under a law signed by former Gov. Phil Murphy that gives survivors of sexual assault extended time to sue their abusers years later. Under the law, which was signed in 2019, adults can bring a civil suit until they turn 55.
“For many survivors, coming forward means not just confronting the abuser, but also an institution that they were raised to trust,” Kimmel said.
Future hearings in the case have not yet been scheduled, records show.