HOMESTEAD, FLA. (WSVN) - Police arrested the priest of a church in Homestead after, they said, he sexually assaulted a parishioner.
Father Jean Claude Jean-Philippe, a parochial vicar at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, was taken into custody Friday night.
He has been charged with sexual battery of an incapacitated victim.
According to a statement from the Archdiocese of Miami, they received a complaint about inappropriate behavior by Jean-Philippe on March 4.
Following a meeting with the woman who alleged she was sexually assaulted by Jean-Philippe back in October, archdiocese officials advised her to report the incident to police.
Archbishop Thomas Wenski has removed Jean-Philippe, 64, from Sacred Heart and has placed him on administrative leave.
Archdiocese officials said they will fully cooperate with law enforcement while they investigate.
Jean-Philippe, a religious order priest, is a member of the Congregation of Priests of the Mission, also known as Vincentians.
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