Priest Faces Battery Charge for Incident with 13-year-old Girl
Carlos Martins (50, Detroit, MI) was arrested, processed, and released on a Notice to Appear for Battery.
On November 21, 2024, at 3:23 p.m., Officers responded to Queen of Apostles Church (formerly St. Paul the Apostle Church) (130 Woodlawn Avenue) for a battery.
Upon arrival, it was learned that a priest had allegedly approached a 13-year-old female standing in line to view the relic of St. Jude and asked her about her hair.
It was determined that at this point, it is suspected the priest proceeded to grab the victim’s hair and made a flossing motion with her hair in his mouth. It was reported to Officers that after the victim had sat down, the priest sat behind her and made a growling noise.
Upon further investigation, Martins was identified as the suspect in this incident, and it was learned that he had come to the church as a representative of the relic of St Jude tour.
A full investigation of this incident was completed by Detectives, and the findings were submitted to the Will County State’s Attorney Office for their review. Following this review, they approved a charge of one count of misdemeanor battery.
Martins was placed into custody on January 27, 2025, at 9:41 a.m. after the complaint warrant for battery was quashed in court.
Martins was processed and released on a Notice to Appear.