Stephen Sauer, a 61-year-old former priest from Metairie, Louisiana, has been sentenced to 25 years in prison after pleading guilty to drugging and sexually assaulting 17 men. Sauer admitted to targeting men who appeared lost or intoxicated in the French Quarter, offering them assistance while secretly drugging them, sometimes by adding substances to their drinks or using an eyedropper to administer sleep-inducing drugs to unconscious individuals.
Sauer would then transport the victims to his residence, where he documented the assaults through photographs and videos. He confessed to molesting some of the men and even provided them with transportation back to their hotels or other locations the following morning. The Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office discovered that Sauer shared these images online and exchanged them with others via email. Many of the victims were tourists or individuals separated from their companions when Sauer approached them.
The crimes took place between 2019 and 2021. The case unfolded when Sauer sent his computer hard drive for repairs in 2021. A technician, upon discovering hundreds of images suggesting sexual assault, alerted authorities in New York. Investigators traced the images back to Metairie and contacted the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office. Many victims were identified through photos Sauer had taken of their identification cards.
A search of Sauer's home uncovered prescription drug bottles belonging to a convicted sex offender in Missouri, as well as the date-rape drug Zolpidem. Sauer pleaded guilty to numerous charges, including 13 counts of sexual battery, nine counts of third-degree rape, 17 counts of video voyeurism, and 16 misdemeanor counts related to drug possession. Judge Shayna Beevers Morvant handed down the 25-year sentence and mandated lifetime registration as a sex offender. Sauer is also prohibited from contacting 12 of the victims. Investigators suspect there may be over 50 additional unidentified victims.
