Former Los Banos priest sentenced 4 years in prison for child porn

LOS BANOS, Calif. (KFSN) -- A former Los Banos priest was sentenced to four years in prison for possessing child pornography, a second time.

Robert Gamel was sentenced in Merced earlier today.

He pleaded 'no contest' to the charges in November.

Gamel was arrested in April of last year after officers found illegal images of a teenage parishioner in a suitcase during a probation check.

He was on probation after pleading 'no contest' to previous child pornography charges in 2016.

The judge stated in court that the biggest issue was that Gamel never destroyed the image that got him arrested in the first case.

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Members of the Catholic Diocese of Fresno say they are still working to help the victim's family.

"The church has done everything we can to reach out to the victim and the family multiple times over the course since 2014 to present. Bishop Armando Ochoa is concerned about the ongoing impact that this has had on the community," said Dominguez.

Dominguez says Gamel was removed from the ministry when he was first arrested.

The diocese is currently working on a report to send to the Vatican which will determine his status as a priest.