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WARREN -- A second man has been charged in an alleged indecent act July 31 at Perkins Park in the city.
Anthony Spinosa, the chorbishop of the Basilica and National Shrine of Our Lady of Lebanon in North Jackson, was charged with procuring, a first-degree misdemeanor, and public indecency, a second-degree misdemeanor, on Friday in Warren Municipal Court.
Warren Police Department officers were called to Perkins Park at approximately 5:40 p.m. July 31 after a caller reported he and his wife saw two men engaged in sexual activity in the park.
Dispatchers told the officers that one of the men approached the caller and his wife and offered them money to watch the sex act.
An officer was flagged down by the caller, who said he and his wife were walking their dog when they noticed two men near the baseball fields by a Honda Civic, noting that one of the men, later identified as 53-year-old Kenneth Kopp, was kneeling on a black rug and performing a sexual act on a man whose name was redacted in the original report.
Officers found the men and spoke with Kopp first in his Civic, noting that he was only wearing boxers -- no pants -- and a black shirt with no sleeves. Kopp had grass and dirt on his bottom, as if he was just sitting on the ground, the report states.
The officer also noted a fake set of women's breasts on the driver's seat and several wigs in the front and back seat.
The report states Kopp told officers that nothing was going on, and the caller only made the report because he likes to dress up like a woman and that bothers the caller.
The officer spoke with the other man -- now identified as Spinosa -- who was sitting in his black SUV's driver's seat smoking a cigar. After denying that he knew Kopp, the other man was told he was free to leave, but a sergeant told the officer he needed to speak more with the caller before releasing Kopp.
The report states that the caller returned and gave a detailed description of what Kopp was wearing and doing, and that he "adamantly" stated he observed Kopp performing the acts on the man. The caller also gave an accurate description of the other man, noting he was smoking a cigar while Kopp was doing it.
The report states that, because of the caller's statement and the officer's observations, Kopp was placed under arrest on a charge of public indecency.
A vehicle inventory was conducted, and three pipes used to smoke methamphetamine with residue were found in different places in the vehicle.
The report also notes Kopp was found to be a Tier III sex offender based on a previous conviction. He is registered with the Trumbull County Sheriff's Office as living in Youngstown, but the police report and court records list his address as Southington.
Charges were filed against Spinosa on Aug. 3, according to court records, and a warrant was issued. Records indicate that warrant was recalled on Thursday and Spinosa pleaded not guilty to the charges on Friday. His bond was set at $200.
Spinosa, 75, celebrated 40 years in the priesthood just over three years ago, according to a June 3, 2023, story in The Vindicator. That story reported that Spinosa was ordained on May 11, 1983, and served churches in Massachusetts, Michigan and Utah before coming to the North Jackson shrine as rector in 2002. A few years later, Spinosa was elevated to monsignor status and was ordained and consecrated Chorbishop on Aug. 13, 2016, according to The Vindicator story.
Kopp and Spinosa are both set to appear in Warren Municipal Court on their charges in September.