Case of former Los Banos priest accused of possessing child pornography will go to a trial

LOS BANOS, Calif. (KFSN) -- Robert Gamel's case will now move to trial after law enforcement took the stand Wednesday.

Gamel was arrested back in April for violating his probation after deputies found illicit images in his Merced residence.

"First thing I noticed was a briefcase in the closet," said Jose Grandanos, Merced County Deputy Probation Officer.

Granados testified in court he was the one who found the briefcase with three sexually explicit images inside.

"The photographs were of a young male fully nude."

According to court documents, the images found were printed on what appeared to be papers from a church, as well as mass schedules. Gamel was arrested for having images of an underage parishioner in 2014 and then sentenced for the crime last year in March.

Los Banos Police Officer Eduardo Solis said he was part of the initial investigation. He said he was told of the images found, and testified that the minor in the photo is the same person from the digital pictures they found back in 2014.

"It was the same individual in the same post."

However, when the defense asked Solis if he used any reference material to prove it was the same person, he claimed it was only from recollection.

Gamel cannot bail out because he is on a probation hold. His trial date is set to be discussed next week.