UPDATE: Former priest taken into custody, will be extradited to NC

UPDATE 04/19/2010
William "Bill" Casey has been arrested today in Greeneville at his home and charged with being a fugitive from justice in North Carolina. Casey appeared in court today and the state of North Carolina will seek extradition for the charge of a first-degree sexual offense, according to court documents.

UPDATE: 5:37 pm, Nate Morabito

Diocese of Knoxville Bishop Richard Stika said church leaders first learned of Tucker's allegation's Wednesday and quickly sprung into action. Stika had this to say about Casey today:

"Last night I met with Father Bill Casey and he admitted there is credibility to Mr. Tucker's statement...Father Casey is ashamed of his actions and truly saddened by the harm that he has caused Mr. Tucker, his family, the church, and all the faithful of the church."

Tucker credits the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests or SNAP with helping him come forward.

"There are more victims," SNAP East Tennessee Coordinator and former nun Susan Vance said. "More victims of Casey more than likely and certainly more victims of other priests in the diocese. It is so important for victims to never think they are alone, because they are not."

She urges any victims to visit SNAP's website: www.rememberthesurvivors.com

As for Casey, he remains under investigation in McDowell County, N.C. for statutory rape that stems from an alleged incident at a hotel between the years of 1977 and 1978, according to Det. Jennifer Trantham.

"(Tucker) reported he was sexually abused by his priest William Casey," Trantham said. "The case is in the district attorney's office right now, reviewing for indictments."

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UPDATE: 1:09 pm, Nate Morabito

Rev. Casey returned our phone call today but said all comment needs to go through the Diocese of Knoxville.

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UPDATE : 11:43 am from the Associated Press

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - The Roman Catholic bishop of Knoxville
says a retired priest has acknowledged sexually abusing a boy at
his Kingsport church more than 30 years ago and there may be other
victims.

Bishop Richard Stika said Thursday the Rev. Bill Casey told
church officials that molestation allegations made public a day
earlier by a 44-year-old Indiana man are credible.

Stika urged anyone else who may have been abused by Casey to
come forward.

Casey, who now lives in Greene County, has been permanently
suspended from Catholic ministry.

He was pastor of St. Dominic Parish in Kingsport between 1976
and 1987. Warren Tucker, of Jeffersonville, Ind. has said he was
abused for five years in the late 1970s beginning when he was a
fifth-grader.

The sheriff's office in Marion, N.C., has launched a criminal
investigation of Casey.

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UPDATE: 10:23 am, Nate Morabito

Warren Tucker will be in the Tri-Cities today to file new police reports against Rev. William Casey. By phone, he said the priest sexually abused him between the ages of 10 and 15 years-old. Tucker said he used to be an altar boy at St. Dominic's Catholic Church in Kingsport.

"I met him in about the 5th grade and he struck up a friendship with my mother who was trying to raise me by myself," Tucker, who is now 44 years-old, said. "We were very poor and he started taking us places. The abuse happened in the rectory, in his bedroom."

Tucker, who is now married, said there are many reasons why he waited so long to report the abuse.

"You go through a lot of emotions. Shame, guilt, you're young, you're confused," Tucker said. "You're told by my generation to pull yourself up by your bootstraps and white knuckle it and pray to God and he will take care of it. Without doubt, I was self-destructing in my life and I could no longer do that. It eats away at your soul. You look at the possibility that he's molesting other children."

A phone call to Rev. Casey has not yet been returned.

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The Knoxville Diocese has suspended a retired Roman Catholic priest and contacted police after a 44-year-old man told church officials he was sexually abused during the 1970s in the Tri-Cities region.

The victim, Warren Tucker of Jeffersonville, Indiana, agreed to be identified by The Associated Press. He said the abuse began in 1975 when he was a fifth-grader at St. Dominic's church in Kingsport. Tucker also said he was abused in Greene County, Tenn. and McDowell County, NC.

Deacon Sean Smith said diocese officials heard the allegations Wednesday and immediately suspended the priest. The diocese didn't release the priest's name. Detective Jennifer Trantham of the sheriff's office in Marion, North Carolina, identified him as the Reverend William Casey of Greene County. She said he is being investigated for sexually abusing a boy while visiting there. Casey didn't immediately respond to a message seeking comment.