AUSTRALIA
Herald Sun
Keith Moor and Shannon Deery, Herald Sun
CARDINAL George Pell has been charged with multiple child sex offences relating to multiple complainants.
Cardinal Pell has been ordered to appear at the Melbourne Magistrates Court on July 18.
Deputy Commissioner Shane Patton said the choice to charge Cardinal Pell was one made by Victoria Police.
Police did not reveal the exact charges being faced by the Cardinal.
It is not yet clear whether the 76-year-old cardinal will return home to fight the charges, or whether authorities will need to seek to extradite him.
The decision to charge the Cardinal ends months of speculation and will have enormous implications for the Catholic Church here and overseas, with Cardinal Pell just a couple of rungs below the Pope on its hierarchy ladder.
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