An official of the Archdiocese of Boston pleaded not guilty today after he was allegedly found with a prostitute behind a cemetery.
Monsignor Arthur Coyle (Archdiocese of Boston website)
Monsignor Arthur Coyle, 62, of Lowell was arraigned this morning in Lowell District Court. He was ordered held on $500 cash bail and will return to court Sept. 16 for a pretrial conference, said Middlesex district attorney’s spokeswoman Stephanie Guyotte.
Coyle was arrested at 5:19 p.m. Sunday after he offered a prostitute money for sex, said Lowell Police Captain Kelly Richardson.
Around that time, police followed a vehicle that they believed belonged to a prostitute. After the vehicle parked behind the Polish Cemetery in Lowell, officers waited five minutes, then approached the vehicle and separated Coyle from the prostitute.
Authorities said Coyle has been charged with paying a fee for sexual conduct.
Coyle was ordained a priest in 1977 and appointed an episcopal vicar, a high-ranking official in the church, in 2008, according to the archdiocese’s website.
The archdiocese said it would be releasing a statement later today.
Melissa can be reached at melissa.hanson@globe.com or on Twitter @Melissa__Hanson
