Senior Vatican Official Cardinal George Pell Facing Multiple Sex Assault Charges in Australia

by Jonathan Pearlman, The Telegraph:

Cardinal George Pell, one of the most powerful figures in the Vatican and Australia’s most senior Catholic, has been charged over historic sex assault offences.

In a stunning decision certain to rock the highest levels of the Holy See, police in the Australian state of Victoria said there were multiple charges against Cardinal Pell and the case involved “multiple complainants”.

Cardinal Pell, who intends to return to Australia to clear his name, is the Vatican’s de facto treasury minister and is the highest-ranking Vatican official to be charged with sexual abuse.

“I am looking forward finally to having my day in court. I am innocent of these charges,” Cardinal Pell said at a press conference at the Vatican early on Thursday morning. “They are false. The whole idea of sexual abuse is abhorrent to me,” he added.

Police have not yet revealed the details of the charges but said the cardinal was required to face Melbourne Magistrates Court on July 18.

The Vatican put out a statement on Thursday about the case. “The Holy See has learned with regret the news of charges filed in Australia against Card. George Pell for decades-old actions that have been attributed to him.

“Having become aware of the charges, Cardinal Pell, acting in full respect for civil laws, has decided to return to his country to face the charges against him, recognizing the importance of his participation to ensure that the process is carried out fairly, and to foster the search for truth.

“The Holy Father, having been informed by Cardinal Pell, has granted the Cardinal a leave of absence so he can defend himself.

“The Holy See expresses its respect for the Australian justice system that will have to decide the merits of the questions raised.”

“Cardinal Pell is facing multiple charges and there are multiple complainants,” said Victoria police’s deputy commissioner Shane Patton.

“It is important to note that none of the allegations that have been made against Cardinal Pell have, obviously, been tested in any court yet,” Mr Patton said in Melbourne. “Cardinal Pell, like any other defendant, has a right to due process.”

Pell to return to Australia

Cardinal Pell has repeatedly insisted he is innocent.

In a statement shortly after the announcement, the Catholic Church in Australia said the cardinal “strenuously denies” the charges.

“Cardinal Pell will return to Australia, as soon as possible, to clear his name following advice and approval by his doctors who will also advise on his travel arrangements,” the Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney said in a statement.

“He said he is looking forward to his day in court and will defend the charges vigorously,” it said.

The 76-year-old will likely be forced to step down from his Vatican post to fight the charges.

Police last year confirmed that Pell was being investigated over alleged offences in Victoria in the 1970s.

‘No one is above the law’

It is unclear what allegations the charges announced relate to, but two men, now in their 40s, have said that Pell touched them inappropriately at Eureka swimming pool in the late 1970s, when Cardinal Pell was a senior priest in Melbourne.

“He would play games like throw the kids out of the water,” Lyndon Monument, a former student, claimed to the ABC in July last year.

“You know, his hand touching your genitals and stuff on the outside of your bathers or shorts. And then that slowly became hand down the front of the pants or your bathers or whatever you call them.”

Damian Dignan, another student, said last year he was “relieved” that police were investigating the Cardinal.

“[It’s] relief for me. Probably relief for my children. Relief for my ex-wife,” he told ABC News last year. “It’s not over yet, it’s only the start.”

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