BRITAIN
Yorkshire Post Today
Dave Mark
HE was described by the children he tormented and by the policeman who caught him as "the most evil of men".
Last night, the former principal of a Catholic care home who visited 25 years of sexual abuse on boys there was facing the possibility of spending the rest of his life behind bars.
In what was said to be "as bad a case of gross breach of trust as one can imagine", Brother James Carragher – previously hailed as an internationally-respected champion of children's welfare – systematically abused disturbed young boys at St William's Community Home, Market Weighton, between 1968 and 1992.
The 14-year jail term imposed yesterday came seven years after he walked free from prison having served five years of a seven-year sentence imposed after he pleaded guilty to one count of buggery, one count of attempted buggery and 12 counts of indecent assault involving nine boys at St William's between 1972 and 1980.
Yesterday Carragher, 64 and living in Oxford, was convicted of five counts of buggery and 11 counts of indecent assault, following a 10-week trial. Even if paroled, Carragher will be in his mid-70s if he ever walks free from jail. The case involved 43 witnesses – many of whom were serving prisoners and several of whom were serving life prison sentences themselves.
During the period under investigation, about 2,000 male children passed through the home along with about 500 staff.
Det Supt Richard Kerman said: "James Garragher is the most evil man I have ever met and I do not say that lightly.
"He was in a position of trust as principal of the home and he used that position to abuse vulnerable children who had difficult backgrounds and who needed care and protection. During his contact with police he has never displayed any remorse."