Former police chaplain's assault victim a family member

The Stearns County Attorney's Office today charged a former chaplain for the St. Cloud Police with six felony counts of criminal sexual conduct.

Arthur James Ree, 82, allegedly sexually assaulted a female family member repeatedly from 1998 to 2006, starting when the victim was eight years old, according to the criminal complaint. Ree admitted to police that he sexually assaulted the family member frequently over several years, the complaint said.

Sgt. Marty Sayre said Ree was a volunteer police chaplain from approximately 1997 to 2005.

"He was a very inactive member for several years," Sayre said. "He was always kind of a backup if we needed a chaplain and the on-call chaplain wasn't available."

A police chaplain's duties include notifying families when a relative has died and going on ride-alongs with officers.

If convicted, Ree could spend the rest of his life in prison.

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