Former Australian bishop jailed for sexually abusing young men
The former Bishop of Broome is one of the most senior Catholic clerics in the world to face sex abuse charges.
Former Australian bishop Christopher Saunders has been jailed for sexually abusing two young Aboriginal men while serving as a Catholic cleric.
Saunders, who stepped down as Bishop of Broome after first being accused of misconduct in 2020, was convicted in August of one count of rape and 12 counts of indecent assault.
On Wednesday, the 76-year-old was handed a sentence of six and a half years in prison, though he will be eligible for parole in February 2031.
He is among the most senior Catholic figures in the world to be charged with sex abuse.
During his trial in Western Australia, the court heard that Saunders had systematically groomed the two young men, bringing them to "shirts-off" gatherings and supplying them with alcohol, often paid for with church money and at church-owned properties.
He was found guilty of kissing and molesting the men, and in one case forcing oral sex on one of them between 2010 and 2019.
Before the trial, several child sex abuse charges were withdrawn, and the jury cleared Saunders of alleged offences involving a third young man.
In a victim impact statement submitted to the court, that young man said he found it difficult to speak about what had occurred.
"I was a toy that he was using," the victim said. "My head is pounding now, I'm in so much pain."
Ordained in 1976, Saunders spent much of his career in the remote Kimberley region in the north-west of the country, and became Bishop of Broome in 1996.
The diocese covers about 770,000 sq km (297,000 sq miles) - an area roughly the size of Turkey - and includes some of the most isolated parts of Australia.
The allegations were first made public in 2020, but the original police inquiry that followed ended without charges.
After a historic inquiry was ordered by the Pope, police launched a fresh investigation.
Only a small number of "Vos Estis Lux Mundi" - Latin for "You Are the Light of the World" - inquiries have been carried out worldwide.
Vos Estis investigations are ordered by the pontiff and were introduced in 2019 to address sexual abuse and ensure bishops and other senior Catholic Church officials are held responsible for their conduct.