Man charged with 20 sexual offenses against children

Detectives from the Sex Assault Squad have arrested an 82-year-old man and charged him with 20 offences following their investigation into a report submitted to the National Redress Scheme concerning child abuse in state care.

The man is accused of sexually and physically assaulting a young girl who attended the mission and was nine years old at the time of the first offence, while working as a Catholic priest at a mission in the WA region between 1986 and 1987.

The 82-year-old man from Rossmoyne was charged with:
• 14 x indecent treatment of a child under 14 years of age;
• 2 x Threatening to injure or harm a person in order to prevent/hinder/force them from carrying out the act;
• 2 x unlawful bodily harm; and
• 2 x bodily harm.

He is due to appear before the Perth Local Court today, Monday 15 July 2024.

If you are a victim of sexual abuse or have information about someone being sexually abused, please contact the police on 131 444 or report the information via the online reporting platform Safe2Say.