Abuse Inquiry Hears of Priests Doing 'Filthy Things'

By Dan Cox
7 News
July 3, 2013

http://au.news.yahoo.com/latest/a/-/latest/17852439/abuse-inquiry-hears-of-priests-doing-filthy-things/

Documents tendered to a New South Wales inquiry into child sexual abuse in the Hunter Valley show senior Catholic Church officials knew about abuse by two paedophile priests, but failed to tell police.

The inquiry was sparked by Detective Chief Inspector Peter Fox.

He claims the Maitland-Newcastle Catholic Diocese did not co-operate with police, who were investigating priests James Fletcher and Denis McAlinden over child sexual abuse allegations.

Counsel assisting the commission today tendered numerous documents which Peter Fox said would have proved helpful with his investigations into the men.

The documents show the former Maitland-Newcastle Bishop Leo Clarke tried to defrock McAlinden, rather than tell police about the allegations.

In 1995 Bishop Clarke wrote to the Pope's representative in Canberra asking him to use his "network of contacts to expedite a very delicate matter".

Other documents show bishops in the Philippines, Papua New Guinea and England were warned about McAlinden's abuse.

A letter from Bishop Clarke to a bishop in the English parish of Nottingham explains that complaints had been made about McAlinden's "behaviour with small children" and that he admitted to the abuse.

In another letter from Bishop Clarke, he includes two addresses for McAlinden.

Police were searching for the priest, and Peter Fox told the inquiry the information would have helped with organising an arrest warrant or an application for McAlinden's extradition.

Peter Fox told the commission some of the documents show Bishop Clarke knew about more victims of McAlinden, but "continued to conceal the names".

McAlinden fought his removal from the ministry and was not defrocked or charged before he died.