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  Priest Cleared of Sex Charges

By Winnie Graham
The Star [South Africa]
November 18, 2005

A foreign Catholic priest has been cleared of sexual abuse charges by both a South African court and the Church.

Father Justin Nnaji, a member of the Society of the Missionaries of St Paul in Abuja, Nigeria, was charged with rape and sexual abuse in the Clocolan (Free State) Magistrate's Court on October 11 last year, refused bail and held in custody for more than five months.

In a statement released by the Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference, the Right Reverend Hubert Bucher, the Bishop of Bethlehem, said he was relieved that this tragic episode in the history of his diocese had come to an end.

The bishop said: "The state eventually withdrew all charges against the priest and he was consequently acquitted by the court. We hope he can resume his priestly work soon."

 
 

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