A Philadelphia priest accused of sexual abusing a minor has been placed on administrative leave, according to the city’s archdiocese.

Rev. Steven J. Marinucci has served as an assistant to the pastor of St. Matthew Roman Catholic Church since 2010 and was recently placed on administrative leave after being accused of sexually abusing a minor in the 1970s. The allegations were reportedly received by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia in late January and the information was shared with St. Matthew parishioners during the next weekend’s services.

According to The Inquirer, Marinucci has served at a variety of parishes since being ordained in 1974. He has served at the following parishes during his time with the church: St. Bernard in Philadelphia (1974 to 1978); St. Bartholomew in Philadelphia (1978 to 1983); Our Lady of Fatima in Bensalem (1983 to 1985); St. John the Evangelist in Morrisville (1985 to 1990); St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood (1990-2000); St. Clement in Philadelphia (2000 to 2001); and St. Agatha/St. James in Philadelphia (2001 to 2010).

Marinucci also served at St. Hubert Catholic High School for Girls in Philadelphia from 1975 to 1979 and Little Flower Catholic High School for Girls in Philadelphia from 1980 to 1983.

Marinucci is not the first Philadelphia priest accused of sexual abuse. Less than three weeks before the church’s announcement regarding Marinucci, they announced that two priests in the area were deemed “not suitable for ministry” following an investigation into sexual abuse allegations.

The Archdiocese has been under increased scrutiny since August 2018 when a grand jury report stated that leaders in Pennsylvania churches covered up when there was a Philadelphia priest accused of sexual abuse. According to the grand jury report, over 1,000 victims and hundreds of priests were involved in the coverup scheme.

The Catholic Church sexual abuse scandal reportedly affected six Pennsylvania dioceses. The grand jury report accuses these dioceses and their leaders of prioritizing the success and reputation of the church over the health of the church’s children.

“All of [the victims] were brushed aside, in every part of the state, by church leaders who preferred to protect the abusers and their institutions above all,” the grand jury report says, according to The Inquirer. “Priests were raping little boys and girls, and the men of God who were responsible not only did nothing: They hid it all.”

Leaders in Pennsylvania dioceses have disputed the results of the grand jury report. A spokesperson for Cardinal Donald Wuerl, who took over the Western Pennsylvania diocese in 1988, reportedly called the investigation a “flawed process” that steered “unwaveringly toward a predetermined result”.

“In factual ways large and small, the Attorney General’s Office was more concerned with getting this report out than getting it right,” Wuerl’s spokesperson said.

These statements mirror concerns raised by other members of the clergy who question the accuracy of the grand jury report and aim to have their named redacted, even temporarily.

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro reportedly stands by the findings of his office’s two year investigation into sexual abuse within the Catholic Church in Pennsylvania.