Trial begins for Nebraska priest accused of sexual assault

The trial of a Roman Catholic priest accused of sexually assaulting a woman in central Nebraska is underway.

Television station KSNB reports that the trial for the Rev. John Kakkuzhiyil began Monday after a jury was selected. He has pleaded not guilty to a charge of forcible sexual assault.

Kakkuzhiyil was arrested early last year following a monthlong investigation by the Nebraska State Patrol after a woman told police he sexually assaulted her in November 2018 in his Ord home.

The woman told investigators she blacked out after having a couple of drinks with the priest.