Alabama, November 23: A priest from Alabama in US, named Alex Crow, tied knot to his 18-year-old girlfriend whom he allegedly groomed before running off to Rome, Italy. The archbishop announced on Wednesday (November 22) that the Vatican is likely to seek the formal removal of Alex Crow from priesthood. According to the marriage certificate filed in the Mobile County the duo got married on Friday, November 17. The marriage certificate revealed that the young woman was graduated from high school in 2023 and had turned 18 only in June, this year.

According to reports from New York Post, the affair started when Crow occasionally visited McGill-Toolen Catholic High in Mobile for theology classes. The teen was a student of the same school and was 17-year-old then. Authorities reportedly unearthed letters between the priest and the young student during investigation. In the letters Crow claimed to have been exorcised as a child and Jesus had guided him to elope with the girl. US Shocker: Gym Teacher Engages in Sexual Relationship With School Student in New Jersey, Arrested for Sex Assault.

However, the authorities are not pursuing any charges against the 30-year-old priest after his partner declined to answer questions about their relationship or the disappearance, Mobile District Attorney's office confirmed. Crow and his lover went to Italy over the summer and returned back to US earlier this month. The authorities reportedly interviewed 30 witnesses and revised thousands of documents given by the Archdioceses but eventually dropped the matter claiming it to be a "private relationship between two adults". US Shocker: School Teacher Forces Teenage Student Into Having Sex With Her in South Carolina, Held.

The Catholic priest was defrocked after he ran away with the girl. Meanwhile the archdiocese of Mobile said that he was "relived" when he learnt that the couple had returned to US. His behaviour is totally unbecoming of a priest", he added revealing dissatisfaction over the incident. Archbishop Thomas J. Rodi suggested that Crow, who is already suspended, has probably delivered his final sermon.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 23, 2023 01:03 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).