AUSTRALIA
WBUR
June 28, 2017
Barbara Campbell
Updated at 4:30 a.m. ET
Police in the Australian state of Victoria say they have charged Roman Catholic Cardinal George Pell with “historical sexual offenses.” The Archdiocese of Sydney says Pell will return from Vatican City, where he is the top financial adviser to Pope Francis, to fight the charges.
Deputy Police Commissioner Shane Patton would not give reporters specifics of the charges against Pell but said there are “multiple complainants.” He said the cardinal has been ordered to appear in court in Melbourne on July 18 for a hearing. Patton gave no further details.
At the Vatican Thursday, Pell told reporters that Pope Francis granted him a leave of absence from his post to travel to Australia to “clear my name.” He said he was the victim of “relentless character assassination.”
“I’m innocent of these charges,” he said, “they are false. The whole idea of sexual abuse is abhorrent to me.”
He’s the most senior Vatican official to ever be charged with sexual abuse, Reuters reports.
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