GLENDALE PRIEST CHARGED WITH RECEIPT
AND DISTRIBUTION OF CHILD PORNOGRAPHY
TIMESLEDGER | QNS.COM | AUG. 7-13, 2020 5
BY JACOB KAYE
A Glendale priest was arrested
for allegedly sending
sexually explicit text messages
to a 15-year-old boy
in Westchester, the United
States Attorney for the
Southern District of New
York’s office announced on
Wednesday.
Reverend Francis Hughes,
a former priest at St. Pancras
Church in Glendale,
was charged with one count
of receipt and distribution
of child pornography after
receiving three photos of
the 15-year-old’s penis, Acting
U.S. Attorney Audrey
Strauss said. Hughes faces
up to 20 years in prison if
convicted of the charges.
Hughes and the 15-yearold
began exchanging text
messages via the dating app
Grindr, in February 2020, according
to the charges. Knowing
the boy was a minor,
Hughes spoke with the boy
about sexually explicit matters
and on three occasions
received photos of the boy’s
penis, the charges state.
The priest made an attempt
to meet the minor in
person, allegedly texting,
“When we meet we can try
to make it a regular thing.”
But the two never met and
when the boy told Hughes
his Grindr account had been
suspended, Hughes stopped
replying, according to the
feds.
On July 29, the FBI
searched Hughes’ Glendale
home and interviewed the
priest about his communications
with the minor, the
charges said.
Hughes admitted to knowing
the boy was underage
and added that it was not the
first time he had engaged
in sexual communications
with a minor, according to
the authorities.
The priest said that he’s
had at least one in-person
sexual encounter with a boy
he believed to be underage,
the charges state. Hughes
added that he has attempted
to meet numerous other minors
in-person to engage in
sexual acts.
Hughes was listed on the
St. Pancras Church website’s
staff page during the
investigation, according to
the charges. His name and
photo have since been taken
down. Hughes has been
with St. Pancras since 2015,
according to the Diocese of
Brooklyn and Queens.
“The pastor was removed
from his post as of July 29,
2020, and a new temporary
parish administrator has
been assigned effective immediately,”
the Diocese said
in a statement.
A spokesperson for St.
Pancras Church declined to
comment.
The investigation into
Hughes’ alleged acts of
sexual abuse are ongoing.
Victims are encouraged to
contact the FBI at 1-800-
Rev. Francis Hughes Photo via St. Pancras Church’s website CALL-FBI.
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