Sydney, July 02: In the wake of embarrassments for child abuse scandals, another Catholic priest has been sentenced to nearly 20 years in jail for sex attacks on 25 children during almost two decades.
The 67-year-old Australian Catholic priest, John Sidney Denham, was sentenced to 19 years and 10 months on Friday after pleading guilty to a range of charges, including multiple counts of indecent assault against boys aged five to 16 at schools in Sydney and New South Wales between 1968 and 1986, AFP reported on Friday.
Judge Helen Syme has described some of the offences as sadistic.
“The indecent assaults involved multiple children, often significant planning, were frequently sadistic and overall persistent, objectively serious, criminal courses of conduct,” Syme said.
“The offender’s actions contributed to a culture of fear and depravity, especially at the school, which allowed these disturbing offences to occur and then remain unpunished for years,” the judge further explained.
On Thursday, Denham apologized to the victims and their families, saying he was filled with remorse.
“All I can say is, I am so sorry,” the priest said in a statement. “I see myself as a mere scumbag paedophile who took advantage of a situation and used my power to abuse young people.”
Pope Benedict XVI met some of the victims and made a public apology for the child abuse during a visit to Australia in July 2008.
The scandal comes only days after Brussels police raided the Belgian Catholic church headquarters. The move followed accusations of child abuse. The Vatican has been under fire over claims that it has been protecting pedophile priests for years.
——-Agencies