AUSTRALIA
7 News
ABC
BY NICOLE CHETTLE
October 7, 2014
The head of the Hillsong church accused an alleged child abuse victim of “tempting” his father into molesting him, a royal commission has heard.
A man, referred to as AHA, told the hearing when he was offered a payout, Brian Houston said: “You know this is your fault this all happened. You tempted my father.”
In a statement Brian Houston said: “I strongly refute that I, at any time, accused him of tempting my father. I would never say this and I do not believe this.”
“At no stage did I attempt to hide or cover up the allegations against my father,” he said.
The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse is examining how Pentecostal churches like Hillsong in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland responded to abuse allegations against Pastor Frank Houston and two other men.
AHA told the hearing William Francis, otherwise known as Frank Houston, visited his family in the Sydney suburb of Coogee in 1969 and 1970 and would sometimes stay over.
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