IRELAND
Sligo Champion
The Sligo priest who has won a High Court challenge against his extradition to Arizona to face sexual abuse charges has proclaimed his innocence but has said he is resigned to the fact that his life as a priest "is over".
Exclusive by Jim Gray
In an exclusive interview with The Sligo Champion, Fr. Pat Colleary, also told how the support and prayers of his family and community in the tightly-knit South Sligo area of his native Curry helped him through what he described as a "surreal ordeal".
"I am absolutely innocent, and my knowledge of that innocence has helped to keep me going through this.
"I have also been greatly strengthened by the support of my family and the local community in Curry, particularly the local GAA club. I have never been ostracised from the community, I have been made to feel part of it. That support, that belief in my innocence, has helped me through.