BUFFALO, N.Y. — Two active priests currently named in lawsuits filed under the Child Victims Act have been placed on administrative leave, the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo announced, for investigative purposes.
The priests are:
- Rev. Paul Nogaro, a pastor in St. Stephen Parish on Grand Island
- Rev. Msg. Peter Popadick, a pastori in St. Aloysius Gonzaga Parish in Cheektowaga
Nogaro and Popadick were first named Wednesday, the first day of a one-year window that the statute of limitations was dropped for survivors of child sex abuse. They were listed by a Niagara Falls law firm along with three others. Of those, two have died, and one is no longer a priest.
According to one of the lawsuits filed, Popadick and Nogaro are two of six people alleged to have abused a boy at St. Mary of Sorrows School and Bishop Fallon High School in the 60s and 70s.
When reached by email Wednesday, Nogaro wrote back that, “I emphatically deny this allegation.”
Popadick was once secretary for former Bishop Edward Head. He did not respond to a request for comment.
In announcing that Nogaro and Popadick were placed on leave, a Diocese statement begins:
Bishop Richard Malone and the Diocese of Buffalo take every accusation of sexual abuse of a minor or adult seriously. Victim-survivors have come forward in various ways. The opening of the Child Victims Act (CVA) and filing of lawsuits against the Diocese of Buffalo has become another avenue by which the Diocese is becoming aware/alerted to claims of abuse.
Press release from Catholic Diocese of Buffalo
