Marlan Burki, who was principal of St. Joseph Catholic School in Beatrice last year and principal of a Catholic school in Omaha for 13 years prior to that, faces a federal charge of production of child pornography.
The complaint against Burki in U.S. District Court is sealed, and a hearing is scheduled for Wednesday.
The charge is punishable by 15 to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine if convicted, followed by supervised release that could last from five years to life.
Both the Lincoln and Omaha dioceses released statements Tuesday saying officials at both schools are cooperating with federal law enforcement officers investigating the case.
Burki was principal of All Saints School from 2006-18 and at the Beatrice school for the 2019-20 school year. The Rev. Nicholas Kipper, director of communications for the Lincoln Diocese, said the school didn't renew Burki's contract in May but it had nothing to do with any criminal allegations.
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“St. Joseph has no record of Burki being accused of sexual misconduct with minors during his tenure at the school,†a statement from the Lincoln Diocese says.
The Omaha Archdiocese said the same thing of his tenure at All Saints.
“The Archdiocese of Omaha remains committed to the protection of young people and vulnerable adults, the prevention of abuse, healing of victims and cooperating with civil authorities,†said Deacon Tim McNeil, chancellor of the Archdiocese of Omaha schools. “If anyone is concerned about Mr. Burki’s past actions, he or she should contact law enforcement."
Burki, who now lives with his wife near Tecumseh, previously taught in Whitman and two other Catholic schools in Omaha: Assumption-Guadalupe and Jesuit Academy before becoming principal at All Saints.