BishopAccountability.org
	Priest Charged with Raping Child Is Given Bail By Sheena Adams and Chiara Carter Saturday Star [South Africa] May 13, 2006 http://www.thestar.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=3244612 A British priest charged with indecently assaulting a homeless 10-year-old South African boy has been given his passport back, and permission to return to the UK. The 52-year-old alleged sex tourist, who appeared in the Cape Town Magistrate's Court yesterday, is the vicar of three English parishes. Child rights supporters and people associated with homeless children shelters protested outside the court when the man appeared yesterday. His advocate, William King, successfully applied for his client, who may not be named until he pleads to a charge of indecent assault, to have his passport returned so that the clergyman may travel home to his quaint village church in the Oxfordshire countryside. It is believed he is an Anglican vicar but this was not disclosed in court yesterday. According to an article posted on an Oxfordshire-based website, the accused travels to South Africa twice a year and has been "supporting a hostel in Cape Town for several years". It claims he and his parishioners have raised ?50 000 (R565 000) for the charity and lauds the priest for saving youths "from sleeping rough". King said it would have been "draconian" of the court not to allow his client the opportunity of a year's work in order to "pay for his trial". His client, it emerged in court, earns ?35 000 a year as a priest and owns a Cape Town flat valued at between R700 000 and R900 000. The case was postponed until August 11. The man is free on R1 000 bail. The hearing was held in camera, although the media was allowed to remain in court. Police investigating officer Inspector Raymond Mitchell said the charge related to the alleged "penetration" of the 10-year-old and that police had information relating to another "incident" with a youth, who is apparently the brother of the child and who claims to be 17 years old. Both children have made statements detailing the alleged assault. They say their parents are deceased. Information also came to light about a digital camera found in the possession of the accused. Mitchell said police were trying to track down a youth who appears in pictures found on the camera. King said his client's defence in the trial would be that he was an alleged victim of extortion. He described the elder boy as a male prostitute and claimed that the youth had tried to solicit a R10 000 bribe from his client in return for the camera, which the youth appeared to have tried to steal in order to show the pictures to the police. Kashiefa Ajam reported last year that self-confessed Swiss paedophile and sex tourist Peter Zimmerman was fined R10 000 after entering into a plea bargain with the National Prosecuting Authority for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old Alexandra boy. In an exclusive interview, the boy told the Saturday Star that Zimmerman often came to the country and spoilt him and his friends "rotten". The Saturday Star then also spoke to four other boys who said they, too, had spent many nights with Zimmerman. They told a harrowing tale of sexual abuse at the hands of a man they called "Master Peter". Ironically, the NPA said one of its reasons for entering into a plea bargain with Zimmerman was that the boy could not be found to testify in the case.
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