MONTREAL -- Catholic priest Brian Boucher has been found guilty of sexually abusing a teenaged altar boy in the Town of Mount Royal.

Boucher, 57, is accused of committing a number of assaults over 20 years as he made his way through half a dozen churches throughout Montreal and its suburbs.

He was found guilty of in one case Monday afternoon. The verdict comes after court testimony from a 23-year-old man who said he suffered years of abuse and sexual assault by Boucher, starting when he was a 12-year-old devout Catholic altar boy at Our Lady of the Annunciation Church in TMR.

Boucher testified the abuse never took place, and that the boy was seeking revenge, because he notified his parents that he was having an “immoral” relationship with a girl in high school.

The judge said the victim testified truthfully, never exaggerated, and that the inconsistencies were minor.

“The victim in this case would probably prefer that I refer to him as a survivor of sexual assault,” said Crown prosecutor Annabelle Sheppard. “It's rewarding. It can never undo the years of abuse, so even positive a decision will not change having been sexually abused for years, but when the purpose is to hold someone accountable so they can't do it to someone else, I think it's a relief and something that will help him in the healing process.”

Another former altar boy from St-John Brebeuf parish in LaSalle also testified that Boucher had used a similar method to have sex with him.

The judge said Boucher's defence was not credible and found him guilty.

Boucher will face a sentencing hearing on March 25, when the prosecution is expected to demand a lengthy sentence.

SECOND TRIAL LOOMS

Boucher is still facing a second trial later this month, this time for two alleged victims, including the one from LaSalle.

Boucher worked in Senneville, LaSalle, Dorval, Town of Mount Royal, and Montreal between 1985 and 2015.

Police investigated Boucher with the cooperation of the Montreal Archdiocese for nearly two years before he was arrested in March 2017.

The Montreal archdiocese said it had stripped Boucher of all his responsibilities during the trial.