A Catholic priest in Centennial has been removed after complaints of sexual misconduct with a minor in the 1970s. The Archdiocese of Denver announced Sunday that Father Mel Thompson of St. Thomas More Parish in Centennial was relieved of priestly faculties.
The church says Thompson was removed from ministry after an April 7 complaint over sexual misconduct with a minor in the early 1970s.
Archbishop Charles Chaput said in a statement that the archdiocese has alerted law enforcement for investigation. He did elaborate on the misconduct.
"It is important to note that Father Thompson maintains his innocence," Chaput wrote.
Thompson had served at seven Denver-area Catholic churches going back to 1969. A letter from Chaput was read at masses at all seven parishes on Sunday and Saturday night.
A spokewoman for the archdiocese, Jeanette DeMelo, said Sunday the abuse complaint came from a grown male about events that happened to him in the 1970s.
The church would not be more specific about when the alleged misconduct occurred, and a timeline provided by the church does not say where Thompson served from 1970 to 1973.
After that, Thompson was assigned to Good Shepherd Parish in Denver, formerly named St. John the Evangelist.
The church asked anyone with conerns about Thomson’s conduct to reach the archdiocese’s Child and Youth Protection Office.
DeMelo said Thompson was not the main pastor of St. Thomas More and that other priests will fill in for him while an investigation continues.
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