Zacharias
TOLEDO — Federal prosecutors late last week filed a new set of charges against a Roman Catholic priest from Findlay who initially was indicted more than two years ago on numerous sex trafficking offenses.
A superseding indictment was filed Dec. 15 in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio against Michael J. Zacharias after a federal grand jury found probable cause to believe the former priest had “by force, fraud and coercion … knowingly recruited, enticed, harbored, transported, provided or obtained” three separate victims under the age of 18 to engage in a commercial sex act.
The alleged offenses are said to have occurred between July of 2005 and August of 2020.
The superseding indictment also includes a specification for the forfeiture upon conviction of certain property owned by Zacharias, including a cell phone, several laptop computers, numerous floppy disks and SD cards, VHS tapes and thumb drives.
Zacharias is slated to be arraigned on the new charges via a remote hearing at 9 a.m. Tuesday before U.S. District Court Judge Jack Zouhary. A jury trial scheduled for Feb. 6 has been postponed.
A federal grand jury initially indicted Zacharias, 56, in August 2020 on one count of sex trafficking of a minor, two counts of sex trafficking of a minor by force, fraud or coercion, and seven counts of sex trafficking of an adult by force, fraud or coercion. Five counts pertaining to the trafficking of an adult were dismissed by prosecutors in August of 2021.
Zacharias had been pastor at St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church in Findlay since 2017 at the time of his arrest and had previously served as pastor at St. Mary of the Assumption Catholic Church in Van Wert, where at least some of the sexual acts allegedly took place, according to the federal indictment. Bishop Daniel Thomas placed Zacharias on administrative leave after the arrest.
According to court documents, Zacharias engaged in sex trafficking minors and adults while he was enrolled as a seminarian and employed as a priest at various religious institutions in the Northern District of Ohio and elsewhere. He is accused of using his position of trust to seek out underage, minor victims and guide them into performing sexual acts. In addition, he is accused of using the drug addiction of his victims to coerce them into performing commercial sex acts.
