Paedophile victims praised for coming forward after priest who taught in Lancashire jailed for 18 years

LANCSASTER (ENGLAND)
Lancaster Live

August 1, 2019

By Paul Britton and Dominic Moffitt

Two men who were sexually abused by a priest in Lancashire have received praise from The NSPCC.

The charity called their actions ‘brave’ after the two men, who were sexually abused as teenagers by a paedophile priest, gave evidence that led to his conviction – and an 18-year prison sentence.

One stood up in court twice to detail his suffering at the hands of Catholic priest Michael Higginbottom in separate trials.

The charity said their ‘courageous actions’ in reporting the abuse and recalling their experiences to a jury showed ‘the passage of time is no protection for abusers’.

Higginbottom, 76, was found guilty of five counts of serious sexual assault and seven counts of indecent assault following a re-trial.

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