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JOEL A. WRIGHT
Former Diocese of Steubenville, OH Franciscan
University student and Diocesan Seminarian at Pontifical College
Josephinum in Columbus OH. Arrested by federal agents in San Diego
1/29/16 on charges related to allegedly seeking to travel to Mexico to
adopt and have sex with multiple female infants. Per court documents,
Wright tried to adopt a baby from Mexico in 2014. His mother told news
media that at least 40 dioceses and religious orders rejected his
applications prior to his admission to Pontifical College. The college
dismissed him after his arrest. Pled not guilty in U.S. District Court
2/25/16. Pled guilty in a plea agreement 4/13/16. Sentenced 7/1/16 to
16 yrs in federal prison and lifetime supervision.
Seminary Student Made Prior Attempts to Obtain Baby
By Julia Kramer
WTOV
February 4, 2016
http://wtov9.com/news/local/seminary-student-made-prior-attempts-to-obtain-baby
Details on the past of a seminary student who was arrested earlier this week on child sex charges have come to light.
Joel Wright, 23, was apprehended in San Diego, CA after he was tracked
by a Homeland Security investigations team. He was allegedly on his way
Mexico to "rent" a 3-year-old female child for sexual assault purposes.
Wright is being charged by federal prosecutors with felony counts of
traveling with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a
minor and aggravated sexual abuse of a child.
A police report shows that Wright may have begun his search for a child in May of last year, right here in Steubenville.
Last spring, a call was made to the Steubenville police department
concerning a post found on Facebook and Craigslist. The report says
Wright, a former Franciscan University student, was looking to pay $150
to babysit a child.
Franciscan University confirmed they are aware of the posts and had
notified Steubenville police around the same time the report was filed.
Over the last several months, Wright had moved to Columbus and was
studying to become a Roman Catholic priest at Pontifical College.
Allegedly, he continued his search to find an infant or female child
under the age of 4 to film while sexually assaulting them.
Steubenville Police Chief Bill McCafferty said he is being advised by
the Department of National Security to not comment on the ongoing
investigation.
Since his arrest, Wright has been expelled from the seminary school. He is being held without bond in a San Diego jail.
Sources:
US Customs and Immigration Enforcement 01.29.16;
KTLA 01.30.16;
Fox 28 01.31.16;
Heavy 01.31.16;
WDUN 01.31.16;
San Diego Union-Tribune 02.04.16;
10TV 02.01.16;
WCAX 02.01.16;
10TV 02.02.16;
NBC4i 02.02.16;
New York Times 02.02.16;
Worthy Adversary 02.02.16;
10TV 02.03.16;
10TV 02.03.16;
BuzzFeed 02.03.16;
WTOV 02.04.16;
TV10 02.08.16;
WCBE 02.10.16;
Courthouse
News Service [San Diego CA] 02.25.16;
NBC4i
02.25.16;
Columbus
Dispatch 03.21.16;
NBC4i
03.21.16;
SNAP
03.21.16;
NBC4i
03.22.16;
Courthouse
News Service 04.13.16;
KRQE
04.13.16;
Los
Angeles Times 04.13.16;
NBC
San Diego 04.13.16;
10TV
04.14.16;
Catholic
Review 04.25.16;
10
News 07.01.16;
10
TV 07.01.16;
CBS
8 07.01.16;
Cincinnati
com 07.01.16;
Los
Angeles Times 07.01.16;
Times
of San Diego 07.01.16;
WTOV
07.01.16;
Freethinker
(UK) 07.05.16;
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