Plea to Dig up Body of Paedophile Priest
By Herald Sun
DEAD paedophile priest Father Anthony Bongiorno is the only suspect in the 1980 murder of Thornbury bookshop owner Maria James who hasn't been cleared by DNA. His sister has refused to provide police with her DNA so her brother can either be linked to the death or eliminated from a new probe into the unsolved killing. Ms James's son Mark yesterday urged police to dig up the disgraced Catholic priest's body so DNA can be extracted from it. "There is enough circumstantial evidence that he was involved in the murder of my mother to warrant his body being exhumed," Mr James said. He said he told his mother Father Bongiorno had attempted to lure him into the parish headquarters with chocolate bars and he believed his mother later confronted the family priest with the paedophilia allegations. "I was lucky I wasn't a victim and my sympathy goes out to those who were victims of his inappropriate behaviour," Mr James said. "It is possible that the confrontation between my mum and Father Bongiorno ended with him killing her in a fit of anger. "Maybe she threatened to expose him as a child molester." Father Bongiorno's sister, the priest's only surviving sibling, has refused a request by homicide squad cold case squad boss Ron Iddles to provide her DNA "She sought what I believe is legal advice and at this stage has declined to give us her sample, which is her right," Det Sen-Sgt Iddles said yesterday. The unknown killer's DNA was obtained in 2001 after Sen-Sgt Iddles decided to send exhibits from the murder scene to be tested on the off chance advances in technology would enable scientists to identify and extract DNA. Sen-Sgt Iddles has cleared more than 15 suspects by comparing their DNA with the killer's sample.
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