UNITED KINGDOM
The Sentinel
MEN who claim they were sexually abused by a priest when they were young boys have told how respected he was in their community.
Catholic priest Alexander Bede Walsh is on trial accused of 27 counts of sexual abuse on eight boys over a 20-year period.
Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court heard yesterday from three of the alleged victims, none of whom can be named for legal reasons.
They say the 58-year-old, pictured, known to them at the time as Father Bede, was seen as a ‘father figure and guardian’ to them.
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