HONG KONG
Asia News
Asia News, HONG KONG - A former Roman Catholic priest facing sex abuse charges in Hong Kong asked a court on Wednesday to halt all legal proceedings against him because the alleged offences took place too long ago to afford him a fair trial.
Stanislaus Lee, now a 53-year-old self-employed interpreter, has been charged with four counts of indecently assaulting a boy between 1975 and 1977.
The victim was 12 and Lee was training to be a priest at the time of the first alleged offence, which according to court documents took place in a school dormitory.
This is the second time a serving or defrocked cleric has been charged with sex crimes in Hong Kong and the case could turn the spotlight back on sex abuse cases involving Roman Catholic clergy around the world.
The clean-shaven Lee sat expressionless as his lawyer, Peter Duncan, told the district court that the alleged offences took place too long ago to allow a fair trial to take place.