(AUSTRALIA)
Australian Broadcasting Corporation - ABC [Sydney, Australia]
January 15, 2024
By Erin Parke and Hannah Murphy
Child abuse detectives are searching a house owned by the Catholic Church in WA’s north amidst a long-running investigation into sexual assault allegations.
Two police cars and five unmarked police vehicles are parked at the property in suburban Broome.
The ABC understands the Piggott Way address is where Broome’s former Catholic Bishop Christopher Saunders lived up until late last year.
The bishop made international headlines last year after an independent report commissioned by the Vatican described him as a sexual predator.
Bishop Saunders has denied any wrongdoing.
On Monday afternoon, officers blocked the two entry gates and have taken storage containers into the property, which is bordered by a brick wall and mango trees.
Western Australian police would not be drawn on why the officers were at the home.
“Child Abuse Squad detectives are in Broome as part of an ongoing investigation into historic child sex offences,” a spokesperson said in a statement.
One neighbour who wished to remain anonymous said the house had been empty since last year.
“We just found all the cars here — the detectives — all raiding the house, so we were curious about what’s going on,” she said.
“[Mr Saunders] keeps it very low key.”
The woman said locals would likely be rocked by the news of the search.
An investigation into the Bishop commenced in early 2020 with allegations of sexual misconduct levelled against the cleric.
Police spent more than a year investigating, but closed the file in May 2021 without laying charges.
The Bishop resigned his position after that, but remained in the Kimberley town until recently after the case again made headlines with the leaking of the independent Vatican inquiry.