TEXAS/ARIZONA
Fox News
Authorities in Arizona arrested a former Catholic priest Tuesday in connection with the 1960 murder of a Texas schoolteacher.
John Feit, 83, was arrested by Maricopa County Sheriff’s deputies outside his apartment in Scottsdale, ABC 15 reported. He faces a murder charge in connection with the death of 25-year-old Irene Garza, of McAllen, Texas.
Garza, a former beauty queen, was last seen going to confession on Easter Saturday, 1960. Her body was found several days later in an irrigation ditch about a mile away from Sacred Heart Catholic Church, where Feit served as a priest. An autopsy showed that Garza had been raped and bludgeoned to death.
Feit was believed to have been the last person to see Garza alive, having heard her confession. He was questioned at the time of the woman’s murder and denied any involvement.
The Dallas Morning News reported that Feit was prosecuted on a charge of assault with intent to rape in connection with another incident earlier that year. However, the case resulted in a mistrial and he pleaded no contest to a charge of aggravated assault.
Feit left the priesthood in the 1970s, married and settled in Arizona.
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