AUSTRALIA
ABC – AM
ELIZABETH JACKSON: The official inquiry into child sexual abuse in the Hunter region of New South Wales is now examining whether police destroyed crucial evidence.
A Lateline investigation has found a senior serving police officer was part of a key Catholic Church expert panel set up to deal with sex abuse cases.
It’s been revealed that over a five year period that police officer attended monthly meetings and then shredded all documents and records of the meetings.
Emily Bourke reports.
EMILY BOURKE: For several years, a senior policewoman with the NSW Sex Crimes Squad sat on the internal Professional Standards Resource Group of the Catholic Church.
That group met for several hours each month to discuss specific cases of abuse by clergy and others.
The ABC’s Lateline program has revealed internal police documents which show that the New South Wales policewoman shredded all records of meetings held between 1998 and 2003.
DAVID SHOEBRIDGE: Why would the police be a party to such an arrangement where they are effectively cleansing the record for the Church?
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