Ex-Hastings priest won boy's trust and then abused him, prosecutor says

Francis Hoefgen was a priest more than 20 years ago at St. Boniface Church in Hastings.

Now the 64-year-old is on trial in Dakota County, accused of sexually abusing an altar boy at the parish in the late 1980s and early ’90s.

Hoefgen, who has left the priesthood and lives in Columbia Heights, faces two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct. While dozens of priests have been accused of sexual misconduct, Hoefgen is one of the few to face criminal charges for alleged offenses that date back decades.

http://www.startribune.com/trial-begins-for-ex-hastings-priest-accused-of-abusing-altar-boy/304394841/