CANADA
International Busines Times
Pope Francis I gets early reminder of urgency of tackling numerous scandals facing Vatican
By Umberto Bacchi
March 14, 2013
A Canadian judge has jailed a retired priest for sexual abuse of altar boys in an early reminder for the new Pope, Francis I, of the plethora of Vatican scandals he will need to tackle to restore the reputation of the Church.
The supreme court of Newfoundland and Labrador, eastern Canada, sentenced George Smith, 75, after he pleaded guilty to 41 charges of sexual assault, indecent assault and common assault committed over a 20-year period from 1969.
Thirteen men accused him of abusing them while he was a parish priest in western Newfoundland.
Smith lured his victims, some of whom were altar boys who helped him at Sunday mass, to his home for an overnight stay. He offered them money or the chance to drive his car.
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