24/02/2014

Fugitive Priest Pleads Guilty To Abuse Charges

A Catholic priest who spent 20 years as a fugitive in Spain has pleaded guilty to 21 counts of indecent assault on seven children.

85-year-old Francis Paul Cullen has admitted abuse of both boys and girls, who were aged six to 16 at the time of the incidents, which date between 1957 and 1991.

The Dublin born priest was first arrested in 1991 but he skipped bail and fled to Tenerife, Spain.

According to a report by the BBC, the fugitive priest pleaded guilty to all counts at Derbyshire Crown Court.

He will be sentenced on 24 March.

(MH)

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