INDIA
The New Indian Express
By Rohan Premkumar Published: 21st February 2016
COIMBATORE: His suspension has been lifted by the Catholic church, and convicted child sex offender Joseph Palanivel Jeyapaul is hoping to be in charge of a parish soon.
The man, accused of molesting two teenage girls in Crookston, Minnesota, when he was an extern priest there, told Express over phone that he had returned to India as the church he was in charge of, in the US, was only a temporary posting.
In June 2015, Jeyapaul was sentenced to a year in prison for sexually abusing a 16-year-old girl, though he did not have to spend time in prison as he had already been incarcerated while awaiting trial. He was soon deported back, after which the Vatican revoked his suspension.
He did not disclose details of the allegations or the trial, due to which he fled from the country and returned to the Diocese of Ootacamund.
Jeyapaul claims to be in Ooty, though the Catholic Church has stated that he has been “away on leave”, with some officials indicating that he is in Karnataka.
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