GOOCHLAND COUNTY, Va. (WTVR) – Father Luke Travers used to be the administrator at the Mary Mother of the Church Abbey in Goochland — until Wednesday when he was replaced.
Father Adrian at the abbey said that’s when they got the news that Travers was being investigated for sexual misconduct at the Delbarton School, a Catholic boy’s school in New Jersey.
The abbey in New Jersey released a statement about the allegations Thursday.
“An allegation involving a minor boundary violation with an adult by Father Luke Travers, O.S.B. is being investigated,” said Abbot Giles P. Hayes. “Although the matter has been reported to the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office, the conduct is not criminal and no criminal charges were issued.” [READ: Statement from NJ abbey on dismissed monk]
Travers was the headmaster there for seven years, between 1999 and 2007.
He was appointed the non-residential administrator for the abbey in Goochland in 2010.
Even after getting the job in Goochland, Travers remained a resident of New Jersey, and in fact would only travel to Virginia every two to three months, saying for two to three days to review the abbey’s finances.
Steve Neill, spokesman for the Catholic Diocese of Richmond, said he didn’t know Travers well. In fact he only met him in person once—as they passed in a hallway.
“He said ‘hello’ and I said ‘hello’ and I said ‘welcome to Richmond,’” said Neill.
The Goochland abbey said its administration is not likely to be affected by the scandal.
It’s also important to note that the Richmond diocese is a separate entity from the abbey in Goochland, and are two different jurisdictions.
Travers has not been charged.
CBS 6 has learned that a victim advocate told the Catholic Diocese of Richmond in a letter Tuesday, that Father Luke allegedly hugged and kissed an 18 year-old victim and even asked the teenager to run away with him.
