A PRIEST has denied knowing how gay porn images appeared on a screen during a presentation he was giving to parents of children preparing for First Communion.

Fr Martin McVeigh was setting up the PowerPoint display when the explicit sex scenes flashed up on the screen.

He was about to give a talk to the parents of First Communicants but abandoned the presentation after the pornographic images appeared.

One of those present said the pictures appeared on the screen after the priest put a USB memory stick into the computer at St Mary's School in Pomeroy, Co Tyrone.

"There were plenty of shocked faces. There's a lot of parents very angry about it."

School principal Sean Devlin is understood to have contacted the Armagh diocese about the incident, which is being investigated by the diocese child protection office.

The Church authorities also went to the police, who said no crime had been committed.

The Archdiocese of Armagh has refused to say whether Fr McVeigh has been suspended from duties or had restrictions imposed on his position while the investigation is under way.

The priest himself insists the pornographic images can be "legitimately explained".

Computer

He told the Ulster Herald newspaper he had no knowledge of how the images appeared on the computer.

A statement from Cardinal Sean Brady said: "The archdiocese immediately sought the advice of the PSNI who indicated that on the basis of the evidence available no crime had been committed."

A spokeswoman for the Council of Catholic Maintained Schools said they were aware that the principal of the school "immediately referred this matter to the diocesan authorities in accordance with the diocesan safeguarding procedures".

An emergency meeting was held in the parish last night.

csheehy@herald.ie