Italian Kenyabased Priest Held over Sex Assault Claims Freed, Africa Review, May 27, 2011

Italian Kenya-based Priest Held over Sex Assault Claims Freed

Africa Review
May 27, 2011

http://www.africareview.com/News/-/979180/1170522/-/hnha6fz/-/

Catholic priest Renato Kizito. He has been set free from police custody after being arrested following claims of sexual abuse by an employee May 26, 2011. FILE | AFRICA REVIEW |

Italian Kenya-based Catholic Priest Renato Kizito has been released from police custody, a day after he surrendered to authorities over sexual abuse claims.

It was not immediately clear on what grounds police decided to set him free.

On Thursday, he surrendered himself at Kilimani Police Station in Nairobi after his employee raised claims of sexual abuse.

Father Kizito’s 26-year-old male secretary alleged that the priest sexually attacked him in Riruta in the outskirts of Nairobi on Tuesday.

Kilimani police boss Bernard Muli said after the complaint was recorded, the secretary was taken for medical examination, which showed that he had indeed been sexually assaulted.

However, investigations are being carried out to establish who had attacked him.

“We have taken him (Fr Kizito) to a medical doctor for specimen comparison,” Mr Muli said.

In June 2009, Fr Kizito, possibly Kenya’s best known Catholic priest, faced similar claims at an orphanage he ran at Dagoretti Corner, Nairobi.

But the Italian, who has served the Catholic Church in Kenya for more than two decades and won two awards for his peace work, denied the accusations of molesting two boys under his care.