American priest who defected to the Soviet Union
Harold M. Koch (1932 – August 15, 1995)[1] was an American Roman Catholic priest from Chicago who defected to the Soviet Union in 1966.[2] His defection, which was included in a Soviet propaganda broadcast,[3] was in protest to the Vietnam War.[4] However he decided to return to the United States three months later saying he wanted to get married.[5] He did, to Jeanette Neager.[6] While in the Soviet Union he was provided an apartment in Moscow.[7]
From 1958 to 1963 he served the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago, leaving when pushed out because of psychiatric problems.[8]
Koch died on August 15, 1995, due to liver failure.[1]
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