Ray, a former priest himself, told the Chicago Sun-Times that Prevost, who was then head of the Midwest province of the Catholic Church’s Augustinian order, signed off on letting him live at St. John Stone Friary from 2000 to 2002.

“He’s the one who gave me permission to stay there,” Ray said bluntly.

And here’s the kicker: Ray had already been accused of sexually abusing at least 13 children and was under strict restrictions. Yet he lived less than a block from St. Thomas the Apostle Elementary School — which, shockingly, was never informed of his presence.

According to Sun-Times, official church records initially claimed there was no school in the immediate area — an assertion now proven false. A child care center was also just across the alley, with no notification to parents or staff.

“The Augustinians were the only ones who