"Sexual Sadist" Priest Who Locked Boy in Crypt and Watched Him Shower Handed Sentence

Coventry Live
January 29, 2021

https://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/local-news/sexual-sadist-priest-who-locked-19727558

Joseph Quigley, a former national education advisor for Roman Catholic schools, sexually and physically abused a boy while he was a parish priest at a church near Warwick.

A priest who sexually and physically abused a boy during a sick six-year ordeal has been jailed for over 11 years.

Father Joseph Quigley - described as a "sexual sadist" - rubbed his teenage victim’s inner thigh after making him wear gym kit, made him take showers with the door open and inflicted ‘sado-masochistic’ punishments on him such as locking him in the church's crypt.

He also beat the boy with a hurling stick during his time at St Charles Borromeo RC church in Hampton-on-the-Hill near Warwick.

The offences took place while he was the parish priest at the church from 2002 until he was forced to resign in disgrace.

Quigley, a former national education advisor for Roman Catholic schools, was convicted of a number of offences in December following a trial at Warwick Crown Court.

He had denied four charges of sexual activity with a child, two of sexual assault, two of false imprisonment and one of cruelty, but a jury took less than four hours to find him guilty of all nine charges by majority verdicts of 11-1.

The court had heard that although the case involved one victim, at the time Quigley was at St Charles Borromeo there was another key witness who had also been abused by the priest.

That boy was aged 16-17 when he fell under the abusive influence of Quigley – and there were a number of similarities between what the two boys suffered.

Quigley, 56, now of Aston Hall, Church Lane, Stone in Staffordshire, was sentenced today at the same court and Judge Peter Cooke - who previously described the perverted priest as "a sexual sadist and voyeur" - jailed him for 11 years and six months.

Quigley was also ordered to sign the sex offenders’ register for life.

Following today's sentence, investigating officer Detective Sergeant Abigail Simpson, from Warwickshire Police, said: “I welcome today’s sentence and hope this sends strong a message to other perpetrators of child sexual abuse that we will always thoroughly investigate sexual offences against children and do everything in our power to bring offenders to justice, regardless of when the offences took place.

“Thankfully Quigley is now behind bars paying the price for his reprehensible crimes committed against a vulnerable child.

“The victim in this case has demonstrated immense bravery in disclosing what happened to him, and I hope today’s sentence offers some comfort and closure.

“I would urge anyone who may have been a victim of sexual abuse to come forward and report this to us, regardless of when the abuse happened. We will always investigate offences of this nature and are committed to ensuring victims have the necessary support in place to help them.”