Australia’s Bishop Saunders on trial for 26 counts of abuse

July 21, 2026

A retired Australian bishop is on trial for 26 counts of sexual abuse allegedly committed against three young males between 2008 and 2017.

Bishop Christopher Saunders, 76, pleaded not guilty to the charges. He was bishop of Broome from 1995 to 2021, when he resigned after allegations were first made.

The prosecutor in the case said today that Bishop Saunders used a “seemingly endless supply of alcohol and cigarettes” to attract Aboriginal young men to “shirts off” parties. ABC News Australia reported that most of the charges involve an adolescent who was 16 or 17 when the alleged abuse began.

After allegations were first made, the initial police investigation ended without charges. A canonical investigation yielded a 200-page report that was leaked and then, amid considerable political pressure, handed over to civil authorities, resulting in the prelate’s arrest in 2024.

Bishop Saunders “likely sexually assaulted four youths while potentially grooming another 67,” the leaked canonical investigation stated. “The bishop has been variously described by witnesses” as “a sexual predator that seeks to prey upon vulnerable Aboriginal men and boys.”

 

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Further information:

• Outback priest allegedly plied young boys with alcohol, abused them at Catholic Church-owned properties (WAtoday, 7/21/26)
• Former bishop of Broome Christopher Saunders faces first day of sex abuse trial (ABC News Australia, 7/21/26)
• Bishop used boozy parties to groom youths, court told (Australian Associated Press, 7/21/26)