Photo Credit: Public Domain Pictures

As Idaho Statesman reports, 73-year-old Faucher, a longtime priest in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Boise, was accused of amassing thousands of child porn images and videos on his home computer — and pleaded guilty in September to sharing some of those images online. He apologized in the courtroom ahead of his sentencing at the Ada County Courthouse in Boise on Thursday.

“This is the crime that has the potential for both immediate and long-lasting consequences,” 4th District Court Judge Jason Scott said. “... I think there is a legitimate risk to the community.”

Diocese officials told the Statesman that they will seek to have Faucher defrocked. They reiterated their intentions in a press release after the sentencing:

“The volumes of shocking information that the law enforcement investigation uncovered reveal the heinous nature of child pornography and the tragic impact upon its victims,” the release says. “While we cannot begin to fathom what brought Faucher to the point that he was able to enter into this evil and dark world, we are thankful for the efforts of the law enforcement community in doing what it can to protect our children from these crimes.”

Prosecutors said they found more than 2,000 photos and videos depicting child sexual abuse on Faucher’s computer and phone. They said he spoke in online chat rooms about having a desire to rape and kill children; his attorney previously said at least one of those conversations was Faucher “role playing” with an author in Brazil.

In online chats with a person called “Bruno,” Faucher expressed a desire to have sex with boys, Garden City police officer Detective John Brumbaugh said. Faucher said he had “satanic desires,” an attraction to 6-year-old boys and that “the thought of killing someone does begin to excite me,” according to the detective.

“I am deeply sorry that I was and have been connected to that in any way,” Faucher told the judge in a statement that lasted about 17 minutes. Faucher said he was deeply struck by the victim impact statements and that he knows child pornography is not a victimless crime.

“I was one really sick puppy. I screwed up big time ... I feel so much remorse and anger,” Faucher said at his sentencing.

“There are many people who will benefit if I am no longer in jail,” Faucher said, explaining that he’d like to help others. “There are no people who will benefit if I am in jail or in prison.”