BishopAccountability.org
	Priest Admits Intimacy with Fire Death Woman The Tribune November 2, 2010 http://www.tribune242.com/news/02112010_nm-inquest_news_pg1 A CATHOLIC priest admitted yesterday he was intimately involved with a woman who died in a fire at her apartment four years ago - the same day he had to be pulled from a separate blaze at his own home. During the continuation of the coroner's inquest into the death of 35-year-old hotel worker Nicola Gibson, Father David Cooper took the stand, claiming he visited the deceased on the night before she died, but does not remember how he got home. He claimed his last coherent memory was of eating a bowl of souse at the woman's apartment. Fr Cooper described his relationship with the deceased as "abnormal" considering his vow of chastity, and revealed that Ms Gibson had made him a beneficiary on her life insurance policy and signed her pension over to him. However, he said that on the Monday after her death, Archbishop Patrick Pinder asked him to sign the pension over to Ms Gibson's mother. Fr Cooper admitted he was like a father to Ms Gibson's son, who was 14 at the time, often picking the boy up from school. But, he said, at the time of her death there was tension in their relationship as he was trying to pull away, but she wanted their involvement to continue. Ms Gibson was found dead following a fire at her Faith Avenue apartment on the morning of July 21, 2006. Just hours earlier, at around 3.30am, Fr Cooper was found unconscious at the rectory of Holy Family Church on Robinson and Claridge roads by fire officers, who had been called to tackle a fire at the building. Fr Cooper, who was the rector at Holy Family at the time of the incident, told the court he met Ms Gibson during 1995 and 1997 when she came to see the rector of St Francis Xavier's Cathedral in relation to her upcoming marriage at the time. The priest told the court their friendship began after her fiance died in a motorcycle accident. He admitted that over the years he became intimately involved with her. He claimed they had not been intimate the night he last visited her. He said he had keys to Ms Gibson's apartment which he claimed he kept in the event of an emergency after he had found them in his car one day. The priest recalled going to her apartment on the night of Thursday, July 20. He recalled he had returned from hospital that evening and made a call to Ms Gibson. He said she asked him to come by, and so he went to her Faith Avenue apartment. He said he drove his car to her apartment sometime before 10pm. Fr Cooper told the court he went to Ms Gibson's bedroom and sat on the floor. He said she brought him some chicken souse and a soda which he ate while she sat on the bed behind him. He told the court they talked about her work, avoiding discussions about their relationship as they were not on good terms at that point. Fr Cooper said that after the meal, he "assumed" he drove himself by the parish rectory and watched television on the couch. "My next recollection was waking up in the Princess Margaret Hospital Accident and Emergency Ward," he told the court. Fr Cooper said he later found out he had been rescued from a rectory fire. The priest told the inquest that he was visited by two police officers that Saturday which was when he was released from the hospital. He said that he gave the officers permission to take blood samples from him after they told him that it was in relation to the fire. The priest recalled that he made several visits to the Central Detective Unit begging to give a statement to police due to the rumours that were surfacing in the community and tabloids. He claimed that he waited 12 days to be interviewed by police. "I told them everything and more they needed to know about my relationship with Nicola." Father Cooper recalled that while rummaging through the garage following the fire, he noticed that the cars he drove were not parked the way he usually parked them. This he said led him to assume that he had not driven himself home the night of the fire. The priest said there had never been a conversation between him and Nicola specifically pertaining to wedding or marriage. He described her as a lovable person who was very professional and dedicated to her job. The priest claimed he didn't make any demands on Nicola's personal life, and pointed out the relationship was already "abnormal" - he having taken a vow of chastity. The inquest was adjourned to Thursday. Fr Cooper is represented by attorneys Alfred Sears and Jeffrey Lloyd. Attorney Godfrey "Pro" Pinder represents Gibson's mother Roevilla Williamson. Coroner William Campbell is presiding over the inquest.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.