No contact alleged in report against Ind. priest

FORT WAYNE, Ind. — Police say a misconduct allegation against a Catholic priest involved a teenage boy when he was assigned to a parish near Fort Wayne before July 1997.

An Allen County Sheriff’s Department report says the teen was lifting weights at St. Louis Besancon Parish in New Haven when he asked the Rev. Thomas Lombardi how working out would affect his muscles. The report says the teen removed his shirt and pants at Lombardi’s request, but there was no physical contact.

A department spokesman tells The Journal Gazette that a victim hasn’t come forward for an investigation to start.

Church officials have removed Lombardi as pastor of a Fort Wayne parish.

Former New Haven parish member Chuck Shoudel says Lombardi lost much weight and had a weight set at the rectory.