Vatican will try ex-nuncio for possession of child pornography, sexual abuse of minors
June 15, 2015
The Vatican City State will try a laicized ex-nuncio on charges of the possession of child pornography and the sexual abuse of minors, the Holy See Press Office has announced.
The trial of Józef Wesolowski will begin on July 11.
Wesolowski, 66, was ordained to the priesthood (1972) and the episcopate (1999) by St. John Paul II. He served as apostolic nuncio to Bolivia (1999-2002); Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan (2002-08); and the Dominican Republic (2008-13).
Accused of child sexual abuse and the subject of investigations in Poland and the Dominican Republic, Wesolowski resigned from his position as apostolic nuncio. In 2014, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith found him guilty of sexual abuse and laicized him.
In a June 15 announcement, the Holy See Press Office stated that
The ex-prelate is accused of a number of offences committed both during his stay in Rome from August 2013 until the moment of his arrest (on 22 September 2014) and in the period he spent in the Dominican Republic, during the five years in which he held the office of apostolic nuncio (he was appointed as nuncio to the Dominican Republic on 24 January 2008 and apostolic delegate to Puerto Rico, offices from which he resigned on 21 August 2013).
With regard to the period spent in Rome, the nuncio is charged with the offence of possession of child pornography under Law VIII of 2013 introduced by Pope Francis. The allegations referring to the preceding period are based on evidence transmitted by the judicial authorities of Santo Domingo in relation to the sexual abuse of minors.
These serious allegations will be scrutinised by the competent judicial body which will be assisted by both technical appraisals of the IT systems used by the defendant and, if necessary, international legal cooperation for the evaluation of testimonial evidence from the competent authorities in Santo Domingo.
For all current news, visit our News home page.
Further information:
- Comunicato: Rinvio a giudizio dell’ex Nunzio Józef Weso?owski, 15.06.2015 (Holy See Press Office)
- Former papal nuncio found guilty of abuse, laicized (CWN, 6/27/14)
All comments are moderated. To lighten our editing burden, only current donors are allowed to Sound Off. If you are a current donor, log in to see the comment form; otherwise please support our work, and Sound Off!
