An Ohio pastor reportedly resigned from his pastorate on Monday after nearly 500 people signed a petition calling for his removal in 2021 for allegedly destroying evidence.

Father Barry Stechschulte resigned following a WCPO9 report that allegedly ordered the destruction of child pornography while serving at another parish and then delayed reporting it for six years. according to outlet.

Parents for Action expressed their concerns in a letter to Stechschulte and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, obtained by the outlet. “Your decision to destroy evidence rather than report to the appropriate authorities severely undermines the confidence that many of us have in your leadership,” the organization reportedly wrote. “We believe a change in leadership is necessary to restore unity and peace in our parish…We respectfully ask that you resign from your position at St. Susanna Parish.”

According to the outlet, the letter also criticised the archdiocese's “lack of direct communication and reassurance.”

According to reports, Stechschulte admitted his mistake in a letter to the church community on July 12 and asked for forgiveness at a mass on July 14. “I gave instructions to destroy the hard drive. I realize not reporting it was a big mistake and I regret it,” he wrote, according to WCPO9.

The child pornography allegations involve the Rev. Tony Kutcher, who served at St. Mary's Church until 2012 and was reportedly investigated in connection with the allegations. Kutcher's successor, the Rev. Steckschulte, and a deacon told authorities they found what appeared to be child pornography on a computer used by the pastor, according to the outlet.

“Fr Barry stated he looked on the computer and found two file folders, one containing gay pornography and the other containing photographs of young boys. He said he could only recall boys who were shirtless. I asked the priest if the children were clearly underage. He replied 'yes' and said they were in their early teens, possibly between 8 and 10 years old,” a 2018 St. Mary's police report alleged, according to the outlet.

The butler reportedly told police that he removed the computer's hard drive at Stechschulte's request and destroyed it with a burner.

Father Barry, who didn't report suspected child pornography to police for six years before ordering it destroyed, resigned from St. Susanna Parish in Mason, 20 days after my story aired. translator The story will air at 6 p.m. https://t.co/hS9SuEdyyL

— Paula Christian (@PaulaChristian_) July 29, 2024

Kutcher resigned from his position in 2021 after a series of scandals, including sexual misconduct, according to another WCPO report. report By Paula Christian Interviewed he.

At the time, the media reported that the controversy surrounding the former pastor included earlier incidents, as well as allegations that he had exchanged multiple inappropriate text messages with a 14-year-old boy and the suicide of a school principal.

According to the outlet, Kutcher is accused of sending multiple lewd text messages to a teenage boy. In an interview, the pastor recounted how the music pastor called the archdiocese. The Montgomery County Prosecutor's Office investigated the allegations and decided not to prosecute Kutcher, Christian said, and requested records from the office. Christian also reported that he has obtained records from other authorities.

Teresa Dinwiddie Herman, co-founder of the Ohio Child Protective Services, obtained the alleged text messages and reviewed them with a colleague, who recorded Kutcher giving the boy gifts, paying him for yard work on church grounds and asking about other boys who had cell phones, according to the outlet.

According to the media, he allegedly sent messages to the boy such as: “Wow, you're incredibly handsome,” “You've become very important to me lately,” and “Are you all tanned and brown?” (Related article: Megachurch pastor Robert Morris admits to “inappropriate sexual conduct” and resigns: reports)

The boy also discussed telling the former pastor that his family was having dinner at BJ's restaurant, according to the outlet. Kutcher responded, “Oh, a restaurant. BJ's always reminds me of something else. I won't go into details, but the second word is 'work' (don't be vulgar),” according to the outlet.

In an interview, the pastor told Christians he knows the alleged messages were inappropriate.