Roman Catholic Bishop Raymond Lahey pleads guilty to child-porn charge

The wall that shielded Bishop Raymond Lahey’s secret life of depravity collapsed in an instant after a simple question from an airport customs agent: do you have a laptop?

Lahey had just arrived in Ottawa on a flight from London on Sept. 15, 2009, bearing a passport that contained stamps for Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia — notorious child-sex tourism destinations.

He hadn’t aroused suspicion until that point, but his relaxed tone changed noticeably and he grew anxious when the specific question was asked — three times. He hesitated again, and finally answered: “Yes.”

That utterance sparked a chain of events that culminated Wednesday with Lahey, 70, pleading guilty in an Ottawa courtroom to importing child pornography.

Court heard that he had 588 images of child pornography involving boys on his laptop and a handheld device. The laptop also contained videos and text stories of child pornography.