Priest accused of coercing congregants for sex in Texas could have single trial for charges from three separate accusers

Prosecutors say Anthony Odiong exploited his parishioners’ emotional dependency to engage in sexual conduct with them A Roman Catholic priest with ties to Texas and south-east Louisiana and criminally charged with abusing his position as a clergyman to pursue sex with three spiritually vulnerable female congregants faces being taken to trial on all of those cases at once. The Texas district attorney’s office prosecuting Anthony Odiong filed a motion seeking to consolidate the three cases in late March, ahead of a trial date that the Guardian understands has tentatively been set for 26 May. Prepared by Ryan Calvert, the McLennan county first assistant district attorney, the motion notes that Texas state law allows “a defendant [to] be prosecuted in a single criminal action” if the crimes alleged “are connected or … are the repeated commission of the same or similar offenses”. And Calvert’s motion maintains that each of the three cases pending against Odiong involves his “exploiting his parishioners’ emotional dependency upon him as a spiritual adviser and engaging in sexual conduct with them”, conduct which Texas law classifies as a felony. Odiong can object to Calvert’s motion in f