source: NBC, via Cryptogon:
A suspended Connecticut Roman Catholic priest who authorities say dealt pounds of methamphetamine and bought a sex shop intending to launder his drug money will spend another three years in prison after being sentenced on Thursday. Around 75 people were in court on Thursday to support Monsignor Kevin Wallin, 63, dubbed "Monsignor Meth" in some media reports, and the judge called it an "unprecedented" turnout for a drug trafficking sentencing. Wallin, who has already served 28 months in jail, was sentenced to five years and five months in prison. With time served, Wallin will be in prison for three more years, followed by five years of supervised release. "My shame remains intense. ... 'I'm sorry' does not convey the remorse I feel," Wallin said on Thursday. "The day I was arrested was a very good day."
In March, Monsignor Kevin Wallin's public defender filed a sentencing request for leniency in federal court in Hartford, citing Wallin's three decades of charitable service as well as more than 80 letters of support, including one from the late New York Cardinal Edward Egan. "I cannot ignore your decision to infect your community with methamphetamine," Judge Alfred Covello said. In addition to the dozens of supporters, 90 letters supporting wallin were also submitted. Wallin pleaded guilty in 2013 to a methamphetamine conspiracy charge and agreed to a potential prison sentence of 10 to 11 years, but was asking for a sentence of no more than four years in prison, followed by a year of home confinement, 500 hours of community service and drug treatment.
"The record evidence demonstrates that Kevin Wallin is an extraordinary man whose remarkable character and acts have touched thousands of people," Wallin's public defender, Kelly Barrett, wrote in the sentencing request in March. "Kevin tragically became a methamphetamine addict. He fell from grace and did criminal wrong, but has confessed his crimes and has been working hard to atone for them." Barrett wrote that Wallin's numerous accomplishments include serving as pastor of St. Peter's Parish in Danbury and the Cathedral Parish in Bridgeport, volunteering with a variety of community groups, helping found an AIDS ministry program, leading an inner city charity group, serving on the Danbury Cultural Commission and serving on the board of directors of Sacred Heart University.
Egan, who died in March, was bishop of the Diocese of Bridgeport from 1988 to 2000 and praised Wallin in a letter to the court. "He was outstanding in the fulfillment of his assignments and in his concern for people in need," Egan wrote. "Father Wallin was held in highest regard as a dedicated clergyman and an outstanding citizen as well." Federal prosecutors said Wallin committed serious crimes and most people convicted of conspiring to sell meth are sentenced to at least 10 years in prison.
Federal investigators said Wallin had associates in California send him methamphetamine beginning in late 2008 or early 2009. By 2011, Wallin's partners were sending him one to three pounds of meth a month and Wallin was running the drug operation out of his apartment in Waterbury, investigators said. Wallin also bought the "Land of Oz & Dorothy's Place" adult video and sex toy shop in North Haven and apparently intended to launder drug proceeds that totaled in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, federal agents said in court documents.
Wallin's two accomplices in California — Chad McCluskey of San Clemente and Kristen Laschober of Laguna Niguel — were both sentenced last year to five years in prison. Two men who helped Wallin sell drugs in Connecticut also were convicted. Kenneth Devries, of Waterbury, was sentenced to more than two years in prison and Michael Nelson of Manchester awaits sentencing. Brian Wallace, a spokesman for the Diocese of Bridgeport, previously said Wallin is still a priest, but remains suspended from public ministry. "We're asking for prayers for him, understanding and recognizing that many people ... suffer from addiction and they lose control of their lives," Wallace said. "It's time for him to try to rebuild his life."
Friday, May 8, 2015
Saturday, May 2, 2015
Chicago Jesuits hid sex crimes
via Chicago Tribune:
Internal church records released Tuesday show that Chicago Jesuits consciously concealed the crimes of convicted sex offender Donald McGuire for more than 40 years as the prominent Roman Catholic priest continued to sexually abuse dozens of children around the globe.
One letter written in 1970 by the Rev. John H. Reinke, then president of Loyola Academy in Wilmette, described McGuire's presence at the school as "positively destructive and corrosive." Instead of insisting he be removed from ministry or sent to treatment, Reinke suggested a transfer to Loyola University.
"This whole situation has been so muddy and troublesome I just wanted to get it out of my mind from time to time," wrote Reinke, who died in 2003. "Anyway, here it is, for the files and the record. … There is little hope of affecting any change. … He cannot be corrected."
The documents contributed to a $19.6 million settlement between the Jesuits and six men from four states announced Tuesday. With an average payout of $3 million per person, the amount per individual is the largest in the history of the U.S. Catholic sexual abuse crisis, the victims' lawyers said. The settlement and the documents add one more chapter to the still unfolding story of sexual abuse in the church.
While the settlement of the lawsuit against the Chicago Province of the Society of Jesus doesn't name any priests accused of abusing minors who have not been previously disclosed to the public, it does name a number of Jesuit superiors who for four decades kept McGuire's crimes a secret and, the victims' attorneys said, enabled him to abuse more young men. To date, lawyers have identified 28 men who have alleged abuse by McGuire from the 1960s until 2004. Eight have filed lawsuits.
"Jesuits made choices time and time again that demonstrated willful indifference," said Jeff Anderson, the plaintiffs' attorney. "Not one Jesuit official has yet to be prosecuted for their complicity in these crimes."
The Rev. Timothy Kesicki, who as Chicago provincial leads the area's Jesuits, said in a statement that the order is "painfully aware" that it made mistakes and failed to protect children. Many steps have been implemented since 2007 to go above and beyond the policies to protect children passed by the U.S. Catholic bishops, said Jeremy Langford, a spokesman for the Chicago Jesuit province. "More important, we failed to listen to those who came forward and to meet their courage in dealing with Donald McGuire as we should have," said Kesicki, who has been promoted to lead the Jesuits' national office next year. Lawyers for the victims commended Kesicki for understanding the failure of the order's leadership in protecting children.
As former spiritual director for Mother Teresa and her Missionaries of Charity, McGuire offered Roman Catholic retreats around the globe.
The first allegation of sexual abuse against McGuire or any Jesuit priest in Chicago came in the form of a lawsuit filed in 2003 by a former student at Loyola Academy. The lawsuit alleged that McGuire molested and beat the student more than 100 times in 1968 and 1969. At the time it was filed, the lawsuit also named and accused the Jesuits of failing to inform law enforcement of the boy's complaints.
The Rev. Richard McGurn, assistant to the provincial for the Chicago Jesuits at the time, said the order did not know of allegations of abuse until it received a letter from Anderson 10 days before his client filed the lawsuit. Only then did the order suspend McGuire's priestly functions, prohibiting him from doing public ministry or administering sacraments pending an investigation.
But as McGuire and the allegations against him made their way through various court systems, evidence began to mount that the Jesuits knew all along.
After a second victim from Loyola Academy came forward, Cook County authorities directed the two men to Wisconsin, where they said McGuire molested them during trips to the resort area near Lake Geneva between 1966 and 1968. Unlike Illinois' statute of limitations, Wisconsin's didn't preclude criminal prosecution. McGuire was convicted in 2006 and sentenced to seven years behind bars and 20 years of probation. Though the prison sentence was postponed pending his appeal, McGuire was jailed three times for violating his probation. Before Wisconsin authorities could have his probation revoked, federal authorities charged McGuire in 2007 with traveling internationally to engage in sexual misconduct with a minor.
That same year, more accusers — six in total — began to report that McGuire had abused them on spiritual retreats. In 2011, documents that Wisconsin prosecutors were told never existed began to surface that showed consecutive Jesuit provincials in Chicago had known the truth about McGuire for a while.
A memo in February 1991 expressed concern about a boy from Anchorage, Alaska, who traveled with McGuire and slept in the same room during a retreat in California. "This travel business is at least very imprudent, perhaps much more serious," wrote the Rev. Robert Wild. He could not be reached for comment.
Another memo, dated April 1993, documented a call from the Rev. Joe Fessio, reporting that McGuire had been accompanied by several young men in Russia, "one of whom he was taking showers with and reading hard pornography." Fessio reportedly contacted the boy's father and "asked him to keep this quiet until he could represent this to McGuire's provincial."
Fessio could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
In 1995, the Rev. Francis Daly, then acting provincial, wrote to McGuire after a mother copied his superiors on a memo telling him to stay away from her son. Daly could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
"Let us hope that no more alleged incidents come to light," Daly wrote. "You must understand the complaints raised in these situations are serious. There must be no more. I am calling you to a prudence greater than that which you have shown in recent years."
In 1998, the Chicago Archdiocese granted McGuire permission to serve in the archdiocese based on a glowing endorsement from his superior, the Rev. Richard Baumann. "Specifically there is nothing to our knowledge in his background which would restrict any ministry with minors," Baumann wrote.
And in a letter to McGurn in October 2000, a parent reported her son's anxiety over how McGuire had treated him during a yearlong mission. McGurn could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
"He cried as he told us 'he couldn't take it anymore!' He stated that Father was overwhelming him with pornographic pictures and talking to him about sexual matters at every waking moment."
With all of this in mind, lawyers amended the complaint to seek punitive damages against the order. The Jesuits and six men reached a $19.6 million settlement in January.
Internal church records released Tuesday show that Chicago Jesuits consciously concealed the crimes of convicted sex offender Donald McGuire for more than 40 years as the prominent Roman Catholic priest continued to sexually abuse dozens of children around the globe.
One letter written in 1970 by the Rev. John H. Reinke, then president of Loyola Academy in Wilmette, described McGuire's presence at the school as "positively destructive and corrosive." Instead of insisting he be removed from ministry or sent to treatment, Reinke suggested a transfer to Loyola University.
"This whole situation has been so muddy and troublesome I just wanted to get it out of my mind from time to time," wrote Reinke, who died in 2003. "Anyway, here it is, for the files and the record. … There is little hope of affecting any change. … He cannot be corrected."
The documents contributed to a $19.6 million settlement between the Jesuits and six men from four states announced Tuesday. With an average payout of $3 million per person, the amount per individual is the largest in the history of the U.S. Catholic sexual abuse crisis, the victims' lawyers said. The settlement and the documents add one more chapter to the still unfolding story of sexual abuse in the church.
While the settlement of the lawsuit against the Chicago Province of the Society of Jesus doesn't name any priests accused of abusing minors who have not been previously disclosed to the public, it does name a number of Jesuit superiors who for four decades kept McGuire's crimes a secret and, the victims' attorneys said, enabled him to abuse more young men. To date, lawyers have identified 28 men who have alleged abuse by McGuire from the 1960s until 2004. Eight have filed lawsuits.
"Jesuits made choices time and time again that demonstrated willful indifference," said Jeff Anderson, the plaintiffs' attorney. "Not one Jesuit official has yet to be prosecuted for their complicity in these crimes."
The Rev. Timothy Kesicki, who as Chicago provincial leads the area's Jesuits, said in a statement that the order is "painfully aware" that it made mistakes and failed to protect children. Many steps have been implemented since 2007 to go above and beyond the policies to protect children passed by the U.S. Catholic bishops, said Jeremy Langford, a spokesman for the Chicago Jesuit province. "More important, we failed to listen to those who came forward and to meet their courage in dealing with Donald McGuire as we should have," said Kesicki, who has been promoted to lead the Jesuits' national office next year. Lawyers for the victims commended Kesicki for understanding the failure of the order's leadership in protecting children.
As former spiritual director for Mother Teresa and her Missionaries of Charity, McGuire offered Roman Catholic retreats around the globe.
The first allegation of sexual abuse against McGuire or any Jesuit priest in Chicago came in the form of a lawsuit filed in 2003 by a former student at Loyola Academy. The lawsuit alleged that McGuire molested and beat the student more than 100 times in 1968 and 1969. At the time it was filed, the lawsuit also named and accused the Jesuits of failing to inform law enforcement of the boy's complaints.
The Rev. Richard McGurn, assistant to the provincial for the Chicago Jesuits at the time, said the order did not know of allegations of abuse until it received a letter from Anderson 10 days before his client filed the lawsuit. Only then did the order suspend McGuire's priestly functions, prohibiting him from doing public ministry or administering sacraments pending an investigation.
But as McGuire and the allegations against him made their way through various court systems, evidence began to mount that the Jesuits knew all along.
After a second victim from Loyola Academy came forward, Cook County authorities directed the two men to Wisconsin, where they said McGuire molested them during trips to the resort area near Lake Geneva between 1966 and 1968. Unlike Illinois' statute of limitations, Wisconsin's didn't preclude criminal prosecution. McGuire was convicted in 2006 and sentenced to seven years behind bars and 20 years of probation. Though the prison sentence was postponed pending his appeal, McGuire was jailed three times for violating his probation. Before Wisconsin authorities could have his probation revoked, federal authorities charged McGuire in 2007 with traveling internationally to engage in sexual misconduct with a minor.
That same year, more accusers — six in total — began to report that McGuire had abused them on spiritual retreats. In 2011, documents that Wisconsin prosecutors were told never existed began to surface that showed consecutive Jesuit provincials in Chicago had known the truth about McGuire for a while.
A memo in February 1991 expressed concern about a boy from Anchorage, Alaska, who traveled with McGuire and slept in the same room during a retreat in California. "This travel business is at least very imprudent, perhaps much more serious," wrote the Rev. Robert Wild. He could not be reached for comment.
Another memo, dated April 1993, documented a call from the Rev. Joe Fessio, reporting that McGuire had been accompanied by several young men in Russia, "one of whom he was taking showers with and reading hard pornography." Fessio reportedly contacted the boy's father and "asked him to keep this quiet until he could represent this to McGuire's provincial."
Fessio could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
In 1995, the Rev. Francis Daly, then acting provincial, wrote to McGuire after a mother copied his superiors on a memo telling him to stay away from her son. Daly could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
"Let us hope that no more alleged incidents come to light," Daly wrote. "You must understand the complaints raised in these situations are serious. There must be no more. I am calling you to a prudence greater than that which you have shown in recent years."
In 1998, the Chicago Archdiocese granted McGuire permission to serve in the archdiocese based on a glowing endorsement from his superior, the Rev. Richard Baumann. "Specifically there is nothing to our knowledge in his background which would restrict any ministry with minors," Baumann wrote.
And in a letter to McGurn in October 2000, a parent reported her son's anxiety over how McGuire had treated him during a yearlong mission. McGurn could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
"He cried as he told us 'he couldn't take it anymore!' He stated that Father was overwhelming him with pornographic pictures and talking to him about sexual matters at every waking moment."
With all of this in mind, lawyers amended the complaint to seek punitive damages against the order. The Jesuits and six men reached a $19.6 million settlement in January.
Monday, April 20, 2015
Leicester Politician Greville Janner should have faced sex abuse trial years ago, says official report
via Leicester Mercury:
Leicester politician Greville Janner should have been put on trial as far back as 1991 to face allegations of sexually abusing children, an official report said today. Up to 25 people – many of them former Leicestershire children's homes residents – told police Lord Janner sexually abused them between 1970 and the mid to late 1980s. However, despite three previous police investigations,two of which were referred to the Crown Prosecution Service, (CPS), the Labour politician, who served as a city MP between 1970 and 1997, was never charged. Details of the historical allegations came to light today as the head of the CPS confirmed that Lord Janner was no longer fit to stand trial because he is seriously ill with Alzheimer's Disease.
However, Leicestershire Police said it believed the decision not to put the matter to a jury was the "wrong one" and is taking legal advice on the possibility of overturning the CPS decision. Alison Saunders, the director of public prosecutions, said it was a "matter of regret" Lord Janner was not charged and put on trial following police investigations in 1991 and 2000. In a comprehensive statement on the case today, she said: "Lord Janner should have been prosecuted in relation to those complaints. "It is a matter of deep regret that the decisions in relation to the previous investigations were as they were.
"Had the previous decisions been to prosecute, as they should have been, Lord Janner would have had the opportunity to challenge the evidence and defend himself through the trial process, with a jury ultimately deciding on his guilt or innocence some years ago. "Victims of the alleged offences have been denied the opportunity of criminal proceedings in relation to the offences of which they have complained. "It is of obvious and particular concern that such proceedings did not take place as a result of what the CPS now consider to be wrong decisions."
Leicestershire's Assistant Chief Constable Roger Bannister, who has overseen the investigation into Lord Janner, said: "Thanks primarily to the courage of 25 victims who have made a complaint and the complete professionalism of the investigation team, we have built a case that the DPP has acknowledged is the result of a thorough investigation, evidentially sufficient and gives rise to a realistic chance of conviction.
"There is credible evidence that this man carried out some of the most serious sexual crimes imaginable over three decades against children who were highly vulnerable and the majority of whom were in care. "I am extremely worried about the impact the decision not to prosecute him will have on those people, and more widely I am worried about the message this decision sends out to others , both past and present, who have suffered and are suffering sexual abuse. "We are exploring what possible legal avenues there may be to challenge this decision and victims themselves have a right to review under a CPS procedure." Lord Janner was named as an alleged abuser during the trial of former city care home manager Frank Beck, who died in prison while serving a sentence for offences against children in care. The BBC reported today that Lord Janner's family had issued a statement that he was "a man of great integrity and high repute" and "entirely innocent of any wrongdoing".
Leicester politician Greville Janner should have been put on trial as far back as 1991 to face allegations of sexually abusing children, an official report said today. Up to 25 people – many of them former Leicestershire children's homes residents – told police Lord Janner sexually abused them between 1970 and the mid to late 1980s. However, despite three previous police investigations,two of which were referred to the Crown Prosecution Service, (CPS), the Labour politician, who served as a city MP between 1970 and 1997, was never charged. Details of the historical allegations came to light today as the head of the CPS confirmed that Lord Janner was no longer fit to stand trial because he is seriously ill with Alzheimer's Disease.
However, Leicestershire Police said it believed the decision not to put the matter to a jury was the "wrong one" and is taking legal advice on the possibility of overturning the CPS decision. Alison Saunders, the director of public prosecutions, said it was a "matter of regret" Lord Janner was not charged and put on trial following police investigations in 1991 and 2000. In a comprehensive statement on the case today, she said: "Lord Janner should have been prosecuted in relation to those complaints. "It is a matter of deep regret that the decisions in relation to the previous investigations were as they were.
"Had the previous decisions been to prosecute, as they should have been, Lord Janner would have had the opportunity to challenge the evidence and defend himself through the trial process, with a jury ultimately deciding on his guilt or innocence some years ago. "Victims of the alleged offences have been denied the opportunity of criminal proceedings in relation to the offences of which they have complained. "It is of obvious and particular concern that such proceedings did not take place as a result of what the CPS now consider to be wrong decisions."
Leicestershire's Assistant Chief Constable Roger Bannister, who has overseen the investigation into Lord Janner, said: "Thanks primarily to the courage of 25 victims who have made a complaint and the complete professionalism of the investigation team, we have built a case that the DPP has acknowledged is the result of a thorough investigation, evidentially sufficient and gives rise to a realistic chance of conviction.
"There is credible evidence that this man carried out some of the most serious sexual crimes imaginable over three decades against children who were highly vulnerable and the majority of whom were in care. "I am extremely worried about the impact the decision not to prosecute him will have on those people, and more widely I am worried about the message this decision sends out to others , both past and present, who have suffered and are suffering sexual abuse. "We are exploring what possible legal avenues there may be to challenge this decision and victims themselves have a right to review under a CPS procedure." Lord Janner was named as an alleged abuser during the trial of former city care home manager Frank Beck, who died in prison while serving a sentence for offences against children in care. The BBC reported today that Lord Janner's family had issued a statement that he was "a man of great integrity and high repute" and "entirely innocent of any wrongdoing".
Tuesday, April 14, 2015
Queensland Child Protection Director Charged With Child Sex Offences
via Your News Wire:
The child protection director for public schools in Queensland has been charged with a series of child sex offences against pupils at schools where he taught as a Catholic Brother in the 1980s.
52-year-old Brett Anthony O’Connor was arrested on March 20 for offences allegedly committed at two NSW schools, in Hunters Hill and Campbelltown.
O’Connor was working as the director of child safety at the Department of Education and Training (DETE) when the offences were reported to police late last year.
The BrisbaneTimes report: Last month, Mr O’Connor was charged by NSW detectives over indecent and sexual assaults allegedly committed against a 12-year-old boy when he was a Marist Brother at Sydney’s prestigious St Joseph’s College, Hunters Hill in 1987.
The child protection director for public schools in Queensland has been charged with a series of child sex offences against pupils at schools where he taught as a Catholic Brother in the 1980s.
52-year-old Brett Anthony O’Connor was arrested on March 20 for offences allegedly committed at two NSW schools, in Hunters Hill and Campbelltown. O’Connor was working as the director of child safety at the Department of Education and Training (DETE) when the offences were reported to police late last year. The BrisbaneTimes report: Last month, Mr O’Connor was charged by NSW detectives over indecent and sexual assaults allegedly committed against a 12-year-old boy when he was a Marist Brother at Sydney’s prestigious St Joseph’s College, Hunters Hill in 1987. He was also charged with sexually and indecently assaulting a 12-year-old-boy at St Gregory’s College, Campbelltown in 1989. Both colleges are large independent Catholic day and boarding schools for boys, run by the Marist Brothers.
O’Connor later left the religious order and qualified as a psychologist. Police said both matters were reported to them in late 2014. On March 20, O’Connor was arrested at Tweed Heads Police Station and charged with four counts of indecent assault of a child aged 16 and under authority, and six counts of sexual intercourse with a child under 16 and under authority. He was granted conditional bail, including a $5000 surety, to appear at Tweed Heads Local Court on Monday, April 13. He is to live at an address in Mount Gravatt, a suburb of Brisbane. In 2013, he was engaged by Independent Schools Queensland to advise that sector on “creating safer independent schools”. He spoke at a seminar on reporting sexual abuse, how to identify grooming behaviour and strategies for incorporating safety in the school curriculum.
A spokesman for the Queensland Department of Education and Training said in late March a public servant was suspended after a range of child-related offences were laid by NSW police. The spokesman said Mr O’Connor had a high level policy position, which did not involve direct contact with children on a regular basis. -
The child protection director for public schools in Queensland has been charged with a series of child sex offences against pupils at schools where he taught as a Catholic Brother in the 1980s.
52-year-old Brett Anthony O’Connor was arrested on March 20 for offences allegedly committed at two NSW schools, in Hunters Hill and Campbelltown.
O’Connor was working as the director of child safety at the Department of Education and Training (DETE) when the offences were reported to police late last year.
The BrisbaneTimes report: Last month, Mr O’Connor was charged by NSW detectives over indecent and sexual assaults allegedly committed against a 12-year-old boy when he was a Marist Brother at Sydney’s prestigious St Joseph’s College, Hunters Hill in 1987.
The child protection director for public schools in Queensland has been charged with a series of child sex offences against pupils at schools where he taught as a Catholic Brother in the 1980s.
52-year-old Brett Anthony O’Connor was arrested on March 20 for offences allegedly committed at two NSW schools, in Hunters Hill and Campbelltown. O’Connor was working as the director of child safety at the Department of Education and Training (DETE) when the offences were reported to police late last year. The BrisbaneTimes report: Last month, Mr O’Connor was charged by NSW detectives over indecent and sexual assaults allegedly committed against a 12-year-old boy when he was a Marist Brother at Sydney’s prestigious St Joseph’s College, Hunters Hill in 1987. He was also charged with sexually and indecently assaulting a 12-year-old-boy at St Gregory’s College, Campbelltown in 1989. Both colleges are large independent Catholic day and boarding schools for boys, run by the Marist Brothers.
O’Connor later left the religious order and qualified as a psychologist. Police said both matters were reported to them in late 2014. On March 20, O’Connor was arrested at Tweed Heads Police Station and charged with four counts of indecent assault of a child aged 16 and under authority, and six counts of sexual intercourse with a child under 16 and under authority. He was granted conditional bail, including a $5000 surety, to appear at Tweed Heads Local Court on Monday, April 13. He is to live at an address in Mount Gravatt, a suburb of Brisbane. In 2013, he was engaged by Independent Schools Queensland to advise that sector on “creating safer independent schools”. He spoke at a seminar on reporting sexual abuse, how to identify grooming behaviour and strategies for incorporating safety in the school curriculum.
A spokesman for the Queensland Department of Education and Training said in late March a public servant was suspended after a range of child-related offences were laid by NSW police. The spokesman said Mr O’Connor had a high level policy position, which did not involve direct contact with children on a regular basis. -
Friday, April 10, 2015
Gay orgies and murder scandals engulf Vatican
more on the ongoing collapse of the Catholic church, via The Independent:
The Vatican has been embroiled in two separate, highly embarrassing, scandals.
In one, a north Italian priest has been removed from office after allegations emerged that he had been surfing the internet to find gay lovers and had been involved in gay orgies. The other, which has generated – if possible – even more lurid press coverage in Italy, alleges a priest in the south of the country is under investigation on suspicion of murdering one of his parishioners. Father Gratien Alabi, from the Democratic Republic of Congo, is under investigation for murder following the discovery of female bones under the flagstones of an ancient mountain chapel. The bones are anticipated to belong to Guerrina Piscaglia, 50, who disappeared from nearby Arezzo in Tuscany last year, The Times reported.
The case has generated intense media interest, with some papers claiming that Father Alabi had engaged in an affair with the woman, a parishioner of his and another priest’s church, and fathered a child with her. Father Alabi has denied all claims, protesting his innocence. Meanwhile, to the north of the country, the local Curia is scrambling to address the allegations made by a 32-year-old man from Rovigo, midway between Bologna and Venice. The unidentified man apparently approached the media after church authorities failed to take action following his official complaint to the Ecclesiastical Court of the Puglia region against the unidentified 50-year-old priest.
The younger man claimed he met the priest through Facebook, forming a close friendship with the clerical figure who then confessed his homosexuality to his online correspondent. In his complaint, according to Italian newspaper Corriere del Mezzogiorno, the man included a record of his conversations with the priest. In these online interactions, the priest admitted to sexual relationships with other religious figures – as well as members of the Vatican’s elite Swiss Guard – using the internet to find new partners and engage in sexual encounters online. Following the involvement of Archbishop of Taranto Filippo Santoro, the individual involved was immediately removed from office, once the “reliability of the facts” had been established. He added that the allegations included behaviour that was “absolutely incompatible with the priestly ministry”. “Needless to say, the feelings of the archbishop and the Curia are those of the regret and dismay,” a Vatican spokesperson told the Italian newspaper.
The Vatican has been embroiled in two separate, highly embarrassing, scandals.
In one, a north Italian priest has been removed from office after allegations emerged that he had been surfing the internet to find gay lovers and had been involved in gay orgies. The other, which has generated – if possible – even more lurid press coverage in Italy, alleges a priest in the south of the country is under investigation on suspicion of murdering one of his parishioners. Father Gratien Alabi, from the Democratic Republic of Congo, is under investigation for murder following the discovery of female bones under the flagstones of an ancient mountain chapel. The bones are anticipated to belong to Guerrina Piscaglia, 50, who disappeared from nearby Arezzo in Tuscany last year, The Times reported.
The case has generated intense media interest, with some papers claiming that Father Alabi had engaged in an affair with the woman, a parishioner of his and another priest’s church, and fathered a child with her. Father Alabi has denied all claims, protesting his innocence. Meanwhile, to the north of the country, the local Curia is scrambling to address the allegations made by a 32-year-old man from Rovigo, midway between Bologna and Venice. The unidentified man apparently approached the media after church authorities failed to take action following his official complaint to the Ecclesiastical Court of the Puglia region against the unidentified 50-year-old priest.
The younger man claimed he met the priest through Facebook, forming a close friendship with the clerical figure who then confessed his homosexuality to his online correspondent. In his complaint, according to Italian newspaper Corriere del Mezzogiorno, the man included a record of his conversations with the priest. In these online interactions, the priest admitted to sexual relationships with other religious figures – as well as members of the Vatican’s elite Swiss Guard – using the internet to find new partners and engage in sexual encounters online. Following the involvement of Archbishop of Taranto Filippo Santoro, the individual involved was immediately removed from office, once the “reliability of the facts” had been established. He added that the allegations included behaviour that was “absolutely incompatible with the priestly ministry”. “Needless to say, the feelings of the archbishop and the Curia are those of the regret and dismay,” a Vatican spokesperson told the Italian newspaper.
Monday, April 6, 2015
Colombian Report on US Military’s Child Rapes Not Newsworthy to US News Outlets
via Globalresearch.ca
:
An 800-page independent report commissioned by the US-friendly Colombian government and the radical left rebel group FARC found that US military soldiers and contractors had sexually abused at least 54 children in Colombia between 2003 and 2007 and, in all cases, the rapists were never punished–either in Colombia or stateside–due to American military personnel being immune from prosecution under diplomatic immunity agreements between the two countries.
The report was part of a broader historical analysis meant to establish the “causes and violence aggravators” of the 50-year-long conflict between the government and rebels that’s presently being negotiated to an end. AsColombia Reports (3/23/15) would spell out:
Thus far, however, these explosive claims seem to have received zero coverage in the general US press, despite having been reported on Venezuela’s Telesur(3/23/15), the British tabloidDaily Mail (3/24/15) and Russian RT (3/25/15).
But why? These aren’t fringe claims, nor can the government of American ally Colombia be dismissed as a peddler of Bolivarian propaganda. Indeed, the Miami Herald (9/3/09) documented the case of US Sgt. Michael Coen and contractor César Ruiz in 2009:
The US government has made little effort to investigate a US Army sergeant and a Mexican civil contractor implicated in Colombia in the raping of a 12-year-old girl in August 2007, according to an El Nuevo Herald investigation.
The suspects, Sgt. Michael Coen and contractor César Ruiz, were taken out of Colombia under diplomatic immunity, and do not face criminal charges in the United States in the rape in a room at Colombia’s Germán Olano Air Force Base in Melgar, 62 miles west of Bogotá.
So why no coverage? Certainly one of Washington’s stanchest Latin American allies co-authoring a blistering report about systemic US military child rape of a civilian population should be of note–if for no other reason than, as the report lays out, it undermined American military efforts to stop drug trafficking and fight leftist rebels:
Yet here we are, over 72 hours since the Colombian and foreign press first reported on the allegations, and there’s a virtual media blackout in America over the case. Nothing on CNN, nothing on MSNBC, nothing in the New York Times or Miami Herald. Nothing in Huffington Post. Nothing inFusion or Vice. Why?
As UK authorities and NATO officials stress the importance of clamping down on “false Russian” narratives in the media, perhaps our own media could stop providing a shining example as to why such anti-Western narratives are so often the only outlet for certain ugly truths.
:
An 800-page independent report commissioned by the US-friendly Colombian government and the radical left rebel group FARC found that US military soldiers and contractors had sexually abused at least 54 children in Colombia between 2003 and 2007 and, in all cases, the rapists were never punished–either in Colombia or stateside–due to American military personnel being immune from prosecution under diplomatic immunity agreements between the two countries.
The report was part of a broader historical analysis meant to establish the “causes and violence aggravators” of the 50-year-long conflict between the government and rebels that’s presently being negotiated to an end. AsColombia Reports (3/23/15) would spell out:
In his report, the historian [Renan Vega] cited one 2004 case in the central Colombian town of Melgar where 53 underage girls were sexually abused by nearby stationed military contractors “who moreover filmed [the abuse] and sold the films as pornographic material.”
According to Colombia’s leading newspaper, El Tiempo, the victims of the sexual abuse practices were forced to flee the region after their families received death threats.
Other Americans stationed at the Tolemaida Air Base allegedly committed similar crimes, but possibly also never saw a day in court due to an immunity arrangement for American soldiers and military contractors agreed by Washington and Bogota.
One case that has called most attention in Colombian media was that of a 12-year-old who in 2007 was raped by a US Army sergeant and a former US military officer who was working in Melgar as a military contractor.
Colombian prosecutors established that the girl had been drugged and subsequently raped inside the military base by US sergeant Michael J. Coen and defense contractor Cesar Ruiz.
However, prosecution officials were not allowed to arrest the suspected child rapists who were subsequently flown out of the country.
Thus far, however, these explosive claims seem to have received zero coverage in the general US press, despite having been reported on Venezuela’s Telesur(3/23/15), the British tabloidDaily Mail (3/24/15) and Russian RT (3/25/15).
But why? These aren’t fringe claims, nor can the government of American ally Colombia be dismissed as a peddler of Bolivarian propaganda. Indeed, the Miami Herald (9/3/09) documented the case of US Sgt. Michael Coen and contractor César Ruiz in 2009:
The US government has made little effort to investigate a US Army sergeant and a Mexican civil contractor implicated in Colombia in the raping of a 12-year-old girl in August 2007, according to an El Nuevo Herald investigation.
The suspects, Sgt. Michael Coen and contractor César Ruiz, were taken out of Colombia under diplomatic immunity, and do not face criminal charges in the United States in the rape in a room at Colombia’s Germán Olano Air Force Base in Melgar, 62 miles west of Bogotá.
So why no coverage? Certainly one of Washington’s stanchest Latin American allies co-authoring a blistering report about systemic US military child rape of a civilian population should be of note–if for no other reason than, as the report lays out, it undermined American military efforts to stop drug trafficking and fight leftist rebels:
However, prosecution officials were not allowed to arrest the suspected child rapists who were subsequently flown out of the country.
The case has caused major indignation among Colombians for years….
The special envoy will possibly have to deal with the role of the US military and its members in the alleged victimization of Colombians.
Yet here we are, over 72 hours since the Colombian and foreign press first reported on the allegations, and there’s a virtual media blackout in America over the case. Nothing on CNN, nothing on MSNBC, nothing in the New York Times or Miami Herald. Nothing in Huffington Post. Nothing inFusion or Vice. Why?
As UK authorities and NATO officials stress the importance of clamping down on “false Russian” narratives in the media, perhaps our own media could stop providing a shining example as to why such anti-Western narratives are so often the only outlet for certain ugly truths.
Wednesday, March 25, 2015
Royal family member was investigated as part of paedophile ring before cover-up, ex-cop says
The Independent:
A member of the Royal family was claimed to be part of a suspected paedophile ring under investigation by police in the late 1980s, a former police officer has said. The former Metropolitan Police officer says he was told by a detective sergeant that the investigation into the ring, which was also claimed to include an MP, was shut down for national security reasons. “I was in a car with two other vice squad officers. … The detective sergeant said he had just had a major child abuse investigation shut down by the CPS regarding a royal and an MP,” he told the Sunday Mirror newspaper. “He did not mention names, but he said the CPS had said it was not in the public’s interest because it ‘could destabilise national security’.” The police officer identified the two colleagues, the newspaper said.
Sir Allan Green, the Director of Public Prosecutions and head of the CPS at the time the conversation took place, said he was not aware of any child abuse investigations shut down for national security reasons. He however said he had been asked by a “senior person” if he had heard anything about a named MP being involved in child abuse. He said he had not. The MP he was asked about has since died, Mr Green said. A Buckingham Palace spokesperson told the Independent: "If detailed, substantive allegations are made they will be taken seriously and looked into. However, we are not in a position to comment on speculative stories based on a chain of unnamed sources." The Metropolitan Police has pledged to investigate historical crimes by establishment figures “without fear of favour”.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Steve Rodhouse told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that he was pleased that allegations of cover-ups were coming to light. "We do think we are getting somewhere with these wider enquiries and we are seeing people coming forward. We have seen lots of coverage this week around allegations of cover-ups, and I think it's helpful that this is being spoken about and people are coming forward. "We will go where the evidence takes us, without fear or favour, I think that is what the public expect and that is what the investigators are doing and are keen to continue to do." The Independent Police Complaints Commission is investigating 14 related allegations of impropriety by officer stretching from the 1970s to 2005. The Home Secretary Theresa May said earlier month that child sexual abuse ran through British society like a “stick of Blackpool rock” and warned that the public did not fully “appreciate the true scale” of exploitation.
A member of the Royal family was claimed to be part of a suspected paedophile ring under investigation by police in the late 1980s, a former police officer has said. The former Metropolitan Police officer says he was told by a detective sergeant that the investigation into the ring, which was also claimed to include an MP, was shut down for national security reasons. “I was in a car with two other vice squad officers. … The detective sergeant said he had just had a major child abuse investigation shut down by the CPS regarding a royal and an MP,” he told the Sunday Mirror newspaper. “He did not mention names, but he said the CPS had said it was not in the public’s interest because it ‘could destabilise national security’.” The police officer identified the two colleagues, the newspaper said.
Sir Allan Green, the Director of Public Prosecutions and head of the CPS at the time the conversation took place, said he was not aware of any child abuse investigations shut down for national security reasons. He however said he had been asked by a “senior person” if he had heard anything about a named MP being involved in child abuse. He said he had not. The MP he was asked about has since died, Mr Green said. A Buckingham Palace spokesperson told the Independent: "If detailed, substantive allegations are made they will be taken seriously and looked into. However, we are not in a position to comment on speculative stories based on a chain of unnamed sources." The Metropolitan Police has pledged to investigate historical crimes by establishment figures “without fear of favour”.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Steve Rodhouse told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that he was pleased that allegations of cover-ups were coming to light. "We do think we are getting somewhere with these wider enquiries and we are seeing people coming forward. We have seen lots of coverage this week around allegations of cover-ups, and I think it's helpful that this is being spoken about and people are coming forward. "We will go where the evidence takes us, without fear or favour, I think that is what the public expect and that is what the investigators are doing and are keen to continue to do." The Independent Police Complaints Commission is investigating 14 related allegations of impropriety by officer stretching from the 1970s to 2005. The Home Secretary Theresa May said earlier month that child sexual abuse ran through British society like a “stick of Blackpool rock” and warned that the public did not fully “appreciate the true scale” of exploitation.
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