A former Roman Catholic deacon who was removed from the ministry in 1988 over multiple accusations of child molestation was jailed early Saturday on allegations that he raped a preteen boy and wrote him love letters roughly four decades ago.

It was the first arrest of a clergyman in New Orleans on a sex-abuse charge since the church’s long-simmering abuse crisis reignited last year.

George Feldner Brignac, 84, faces a count of first-degree rape in the latest of several criminal cases brought against him, though none have previously been successful.

According to a New Orleans Police Department affidavit summarizing the allegations, Brignac was a math teacher and the co-director of the altar boy program at Our Lady of the Rosary Parish when he met the victim in 1978. The child was 7 and had just become an altar boy, and Brignac befriended him by buying him snacks and soft drinks and hosting him at his home.

Over the next several years, until the boy was 12, Brignac would force oral sex on the child and masturbate in front of him, ultimately raping him, police alleged. Most of the assaults occurred at Brignac's home, though occasionally he would abuse the child in a classroom or drive him to City Park to molest him in the car, according to police.

Police said Brignac wrote love notes to the victim, who turned them over to investigators recently. They read, "I love you" and "would love hearing from you and seeing you again."

Others read, "It is really hard for me to understand why you don't even acknowledge that I exist," and, "What words can tell you of the love I have for you, your kindness and warmth have made you dear to me. I'll miss you, love Mr. Brignac."

Police said the victim came forward as a grown-up in late August 2018.

Sgt. Lawrence Jones obtained a warrant to arrest Brignac on Friday. Authorities arrested him in Metairie, where he lives, and transferred him to the New Orleans jail early Saturday.

An Orleans Parish Magistrate Court commissioner on Saturday afternoon set bail for Brignac, who has no prior criminal convictions, at $40,000. He posted a bond within hours to await the outcome of the case from out of jail

Brignac would face mandatory life imprisonment if convicted of first-degree rape, which has no statute of limitations — meaning prosecutors can try the case no matter how long ago the alleged crime occurred.

The alleged victim said Saturday, "I'm very glad he's been arrested and they're pressing charges. I hope this goes to trial quickly, and I hope the truth comes out and he's found guilty."

The Archdiocese of New Orleans has already paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to people claiming to have been abused by Brignac, who until last year had been allowed to read as a lector at a church in Metairie.

Though the local archdiocese has made public the names of roughly 60 abusers — including Brignac — since the scandal first erupted, the acknowledgment of so much abuse hasn't prompted much response from local law enforcement. In fact, Brignac may be the first local clergyman booked on a sex abuse charge since he himself was arrested in 1988.

The late priest Dino Cinel was charged in 1991 in connection with a cache of child pornography that was discovered at the St. Rita Church rectory three years earlier. He had left the priesthood by the time he was charged and was ultimately acquitted in 1995.

Police last summer said they were reinvestigating Brignac in connection with new abuse allegations after The New Orleans Advocate reported that the church had made a recent Brignac-related payout. The newspaper also revealed his ongoing role as a lector during Mass in a diocesan church.

Disgraced New Orleans deacon continued as lay minister despite abuse claims; archbishop 'embarrassed' Last weekend, a parishioner pulled up to St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church but drove away before walking into the sanctuary.

Brignac has previously been tried in Jefferson Parish on charges that he molested boys at St. Matthew the Apostle in the 1970s, before he went to work at Our Lady of the Rosary. He was acquitted.

New Orleans police then arrested him on similar allegations in 1980 and 1988. Prosecutors opted against pursuing those charges, though Brignac was removed from the ministry following the latter case.

After the 1988 charge was dismissed, then-Archbishop Philip Hannan sent a letter to Brignac’s defense attorney, saying, “I am deeply grateful to you for your excellent work in this case and your wonderful support of Deacon Brignac.”

Court records show some archdiocesan officials subsequently tried to get Brignac reinstated as a deacon, but Archbishop Francis Schulte — Hannan’s successor — put an end to those efforts.

Last year, the archdiocese paid more than $500,000 to an accuser who said he was raped by Brignac between 1979 and 1982. Lawyer Roger Stetter said that victim, whom he represents, is the same one pressing the criminal case against Brignac.

At least three other plaintiffs have filed similar lawsuits in Civil District Court. One has settled, and another is pending. The status of the third case is unclear.

Archdiocese of New Orleans settles another sexual abuse case involving ex-deacon George Brignac A volunteer firefighter from North Carolina who claimed that he was sexually abused in 7th grade by disgraced former New Orleans deacon George…

An unknown number of others claiming to have been victimized by Brignac have either settled or are negotiating to do so through a private mediation process involving the archdiocese.

Brignac was reading at Masses at St. Mary Magdalen Church as recently as mid-2018, The New Orleans Advocate reported at the time. Archbishop Gregory Aymond said then that he was “utterly surprised and embarrassed” to learn that, and he stripped Brignac of that privilege.

The Knights of Columbus had also let Brignac hold leadership roles. He lectured children and picked out costumes for them during a 2017 celebration of the Feast of Fatima, according to documents from one of the pending suits.

Brignac was among two deacons and 55 priests included on the list Aymond released last fall of clergymen with ties to the New Orleans area who were deemed to have been credibly accused of child sexual abuse. Four priests, including one who’d been sent to federal prison in a child abuse and kidnapping case, were added to that roster in June.

Though several of those on the list are still living, Brignac appears to be the first to face prosecution following the release of the list.

His attorney, Martin Regan, declined comment Saturday.

In one telephone interview with the newspaper, Brignac denied wrongdoing. But in another, he stopped short of denying he had touched young boys.

“I would not have gone into teaching if I were not attracted to children,” he said then, though insisting he never would have touched a child for “immoral purposes.” He said he had been labeled “asexual” by a psychologist but also said, “I’m not going to deny that I have touched a child.”

New Orleans' archbishop since 2009, Aymond has said he referred the list of disgraced clergymen — released in response to calls for transparency — to law enforcement authorities and would support any resulting probes.

In a statement Saturday about Brignac's arrest, the archdiocese said, “We, too, seek truth and justice, and as always we pledge our full cooperation in the law enforcement investigation.”

Stetter on Saturday said Brignac “belongs behind bars, and they need to make an example of him.”

Meanwhile, the victim — who asked to not be identified — expressed relief that Brignac had been arrested.

“I hope this goes to trial quickly, and I hope the truth comes out and he's found guilty,” said the victim, who asked to not be identified.

Note: This post was updated to note Brignac had made $40,000 bail.

Sexual abuse complaint against former deacon filed with NOPD, archbishop confirms Archbishop Gregory Aymond confirmed in a statement Friday night (July 13) that a sexual abuse complaint has been filed with the New Orleans Po…