‘I am a broken man’: What the father of two church sex abuse victims told George Pell as he confronted the ‘smooth’ Cardinal following his royal commission evidence

ROME
Daily Mail

By LUCY MAE BEERS FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA and AAP

A father whose two daughters suffered horrific sexual abuse at the hands of a priest has confronted Cardinal George Pell, telling him he is a ‘broken man.’

Anthony Foster cornered the former Archbishop of Melbourne outside his Rome hotel room after his second day of testimony via video link to the child abuse royal commission, but said the man he spoke to was the ‘smooth Cardinal Pell, not the Cardinal Pell [he] saw on the stand,’ The ABC reported.

Mr Foster’s daughter Emma was raped by Melbourne priest Kevin O’Donnell in the 1980s and she died in 2008 the age of 26 from a drug overdose and years of battling eating disorders, self harm and addiction.

His other daughter Katie, who was also raped by Father O’Donnell, became a binge drinker and requires round the clock care after being left disabled from a car accident in 1999.

Mr Foster said they held hands as they spoke, but admitted he felt no connection and instead said the Cardinal was ‘holding the hand of a broken man.’

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