LONDON (ENGLAND)
BBC
January 14, 2020
A former French priest accused of sexually abusing dozens of Boy Scouts has admitted “caressing” children in ways he knew were wrong, at the beginning of his trial in France.
“It could be four or five children a week,” Bernard Preynat, 74, told the court in Lyon on Tuesday.
He is accused of assaulting at least 80 young boys in the 1980s and 1990s and faces ten years in prison if convicted.
Ten of his accusers are expected to give evidence in the four-day trial.
The men were all aged between seven and 15 at the time of the alleged abuse.
This is the first time that Mr Preynat has appeared in a French court to answer questions about these allegations.
What happened at the court?
Speaking on the first day of his trial, Mr Preynat said he did not initially see his actions as “committing sexual assault, but giving caresses… hugs”.
He admitted to the court, however, that the interactions – which frequently occurred at a scout camp he organised at weekends – “did bring me sexual pleasure”.
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