UNITED KINGDOM
Harlow Star
A priest who served in Harlow during the 1990s has denied sexually abusing teenage boys and taking indecent photographs of children.
Father Tony McSweeney, who was priest of the Holy Cross & St Luke’s parish between 1993 and 1997, was arrested in February 2013 by officers from the Metropolitan Police.
The 68-year-old clergyman was once part-time chaplain at Norwich FC and officiated at the wedding of world heavyweight boxing champion Frank Bruno in 1990.
But Southwark Crown Court was told he had a sexual interest in young boys before he entered the priesthood and had collected “vile” images of children over a period of many years.
McSweeney was originally charged along with former children’s home manager John Stingemore, who was found dead weeks before the trial was due to start.
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