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Ex-Nun’s Suit Alleging Priest Raped Her in ’83 Is Dismissed

Times Staff Writer

A judge dismissed a lawsuit by a former Roman Catholic nun who alleged she was raped by a Texas priest in the Philippines 19 years ago.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Wiatt granted the Rev. Ernesto Villaroya’s request, ruling the woman failed to file the suit in a timely manner, said Don Steier, the priest’s attorney.

The judge previously dismissed the ex-nun’s sexual abuse lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and sanctioned her attorney, accusing both of using the court system to seek publicity.

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In her lawsuit, Sylvia Abano Martinez Arambulo accused Villaroya of raping and impregnating her in December 1983 in the Philippines.

She and her son, Jonathan Tomas Martinez Arambulo, now 18, sued in August, alleging a conspiracy to cover up Villaroya’s conduct.

Archdiocese officials said the priest never worked for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.

During the 1990s, Villaroya lived in Los Angeles and performed priestly functions, officials said, but the archdiocese ordered him to stop.

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