Church did not react: Paedophile priest forced children to kneel between his legs and threatened them with a knife

Cardinal George Pell told the Royal Commission into Child Abuse that information about a paedophile priest who forced children to kneel between his legs during confession and who stabbed a bird with a screwdriver in front of students was deliberately withheld from him, writes Daily Mail, reports the Patria news agency.

Pell testified about paedophile priests from the 1970s via video link from Rome. Questioner Gail Furness focused on the priest of the Doveton parish, Peter Searson, whom Pell described as "one of the most unpleasant people" he had ever met.

In the 1980s, the Church ignored a large amount of evidence that Searson was abusing children and did not remove him from his duties.

The head of the Commission, Peter McClellan, said that by 1993, all priests near Searson's parish were clear that this man was a serious problem and therefore should not be a priest.

"I accepted the position, the official position, that we did not have enough evidence to remove him from that duty," Cardinal Pell said.

Among the complaints against Searson were the following statements: he kept weapons at school, showed children a dead body in a coffin, had sexual contact with children, was cruel to animals, and pointed a knife at a girl's chest, saying, "If you move, this will go into you." He was also accused of forcing children to kneel between his knees and sit on his lap during confession, and he recorded the confessions.

Pell called Searson's behaviour appalling but said he did not know it was all happening at the time. He added that the Catholic Education Office had deceived him and that he was not informed about everything.

The questioners said it was scandalous that the Church did not react to the information, writes Index.