A Catholic priest in California landed in purgatory for allegedly forgetting that thou shalt not get involved with gangs, drugs and guns — as well as a physically abusive sexual relationship, according to reports.
The Rev. Guadalupe Rios of St. Joseph’s Church in Selma has been placed on administrative leave during a probe, Cheryl Sarkisian, chancellor for the Diocese of Fresno, told the Fresno Bee.
The diocese also got a restraining order to protect church workers from the disgraced man of faith with alleged habits from hell, who can’t venture within 100 yards of the property, according to the paper.
Rios was accused of being involved in a “physical” and “romantic” relationship with a 41-year-old woman who worked as his assistant, according to the Bee, which has not named her.
The woman recently ended the four-year relationship, during which, she alleged, the priest punched her in the face and knocked her down more than once, the paper reported, citing the request for the restraining order.
She also described the man of the cloth as a marijuana-smoking heavy drinker who had threatened her at gunpoint — and even engaged in an alleged “Russian roulette” incident.
“Mr. Rios and I were in his Rectory when he put a gun to his head in front of me,” the woman wrote in her declaration, according to ABC 30 Action News.
“As I started to cry in shock, I asked him what he was doing and he said to me, ‘Either I’m going to die or you are or we both are.’ Due to his past as a gang member and the gangster friends he hangs out with, I’m afraid for my safety and for my family,” she continued.
“His guns are accessible and since he threatened me before with killing me, I’m afraid when he finds out about the Diocese knowing the truth about him, he would come after me in retaliation against me,” she added.
Church officials and the woman also accused Rios of being involved with criminal street gangs.
“He is a past gang member or associate and still maintains friendship with gang members,” according to the documents cited by the Bee.
Several parishioners told Action News they knew Rios was either in a gang or affiliated with one — and have also seen social media photos of him with assault rifles or a high-power .357 Magnum handgun.
“The fact that he is having photographs published like that, to me, would be a little disturbing and certainly something you would think the bishop would’ve nipped in the bud,” Melanie Sakoda, a support specialist for the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, told the station.
Rios also was convicted in a 2016 DUI incident for driving with a blood-alcohol content of .19 percent — more than twice the legal limit, according to Action News.
“This is a matter of an internal investigation and the confidentiality and privacy of all concerned parties will be respected and upheld,” Sarkisian told the Bee in a statement.
“I can confirm that Fr Rios has been placed on paid administrative leave while the investigation is in process,” she added.
Selma Police Chief Joe Gomez told Action News that his department has not gotten any crime reports related to the restraining order.
Neither news outlet has been able to contact Rios, who faces a court hearing on Jan. 25.