AUSTRALIA
Newcastle Herald
By JASON GORDON July 2, 2013
SERIOUS doubts have been cast over allegations that former Maitland-Newcastle bishop Michael Malone allegedly tipped off a priest that he was being investigated over claims of child sex abuse and told him who the complainant was.
Detective Chief Inspector Peter Fox made the claim before the Special Commission of Inquiry in Newcastle on Tuesday morning, but his recollection of the event has been heavily questioned.
Under examination by counsel assisting the inquiry, Julia Lonergan SC, Fox was asked about a complaint he received in 2002 from a victim, known only as AH.
Fox told the inquiry that AH was “very distraught” when she called him. She allegedly told Fox that Bishop Malone had spoken to Father James Fletcher, disclosed AH’s real name to him and told him that she had made a complaint to police about his sexual abuse of her.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.