INDIA
Hindustan Times
A Christian priest wanted by the Interpol for allegedly raping a minor girl in the US eight years ago has been arrested in Erode district, around 450km from here, the police said on Saturday.
Rev Jeyapaul alias Joseph Palanivel Jeyapaul, 57, was charged by US authorities with raping a 14-year-old girl in 2004 when he was engaged in pastoral duties at a church under the diocese of Crookston, Minnesota. His responsibilities there included taking care of children, police sources said.
A suit in this regard had also been registered in the Roseau County Court. However, Jeyapaul managed to flee from the US in 2005 and has since then maintained a low profile serving at far-flung churches in Tamil Nadu.
The US police then handed over the case to the Interpol, which obtained an arrest warrant against the priest and asked Tamil Nadu police to trace him.
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