by Sabrina Salas Matanane

Guam - The Archdiocese of Agana has come clean, admitting Father Raymond Cepeda was laicized last December. The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests has previously questioned the status of Fr. Cepeda in the church community.

According to a press release issued this afternoon by the Archdiocese, "At the conclusion of an investigation of serious allegations of abuse by Fr. Raymond Cepeda, the Archdiocese had Fr. Raymond laicized in December of 2009." The release went on to state he is no longer a priest, adding, "The Archdiocese has reported the case to civil authorities so we cannot comment at this time".

Fr. Cepeda was working at Catholic Social Services, but was terminated after he failed to report back to work about two weeks ago.