A former Catholic priest in Louisiana has been sentenced to 25 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to drugging and molesting 17 men he met in New Orleans, a prosecutor said. Via the Associated Press:

WVUE-TV reported that Stephen Sauer, 61, targeted people in the city’s French Quarter who appeared drunk, lost or in need of help, according to Jefferson Parish District Attorney Paul D. Connick Jr.

[...] The investigation began in 2021 after Sauer sent a computer to an electronics repair company in New York. A technician found hundreds of images suggesting sexual assaults had occurred. New York law enforcement officials determined the images were taken in Metairie and notified the Jefferson Parish sheriff.

The prosecutor said Sauer put narcotics in men’s drinks at bars or gave them sleep-inducing drugs after they passed out from drinking. He then drove the victims to his home in the New Orleans suburb of Metairie, where he photographed or videotaped the unconscious men and molested some of them.

Sauer pleaded guilty to 13 counts of sexual battery, nine counts of third-degree rape, 17 counts of video voyeurism and 16 misdemeanor charges.

I wonder if he got kicked out of the priesthood -- and why.