Toronto Imam is issuing religious marriage certificates
for polygamous relationships
for polygamous relationships
Cosmin Dzsurdzsa by Cosmin Dzsurdzsa in Politics
A recent investigative report by the Fifth Estate has revealed that a Toronto mosque has been issuing marriage certificates for Muslims in polygamous relationships.
Polygamy is illegal in Canada under section 293 of the Criminal Code, however it is rarely prosecuted by the legal system.
“I’ve decided to have a marriage again, to take a second wife” says the undercover reporter to Imam Aly Hindy.
“We have no problem with the government because this is nikah [a Muslim marriage]. There is no problem,” says the Imam. “We are not going to register. If you register then it is illegal because you are already married.”
Since they don't register such marriages, what is to stop them from marrying child brides? Is this a practice at this mosque, or at any mosque in Canada? I know the Canadian government does not want to go there because it's not politically correct to expose the horrors of Islam.
Since they don't register such marriages, what is to stop them from marrying child brides? Is this a practice at this mosque, or at any mosque in Canada? I know the Canadian government does not want to go there because it's not politically correct to expose the horrors of Islam.
When confronted with the video of his statements, Imam Aly Hindy says that “you can’t prevent” polygamy. “We have a problem and eventually this society, we’re going to recognize that there’s not enough men for each woman.”
That's no problem here in Canada. We have many solutions to that problem. None of them line up with Islam, Christianity, or common sense, but it's Canada, eh?
Imam Aly Hindy has courted controversy before. In 2012, Hindy was quoted telling his congregation that homosexuality was “nonsense” and an “invented” phenomenon.
He described homosexuality as “illegal acts” saying that “Illegal means illegal in Islam, not illegal in the Canadian law, because everything is legal in the Canadian law, except children. Other than that, they allow everything.”
He’s also claimed that the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks were conducted by the CIA, he’s refused to sign a letter condemning the 2005 London bombings and has called the Toronto 18 terrorists “good people”.
Invasion by invitation
The multi-million dollar Salaheddin Islamic Centre in Toronto where he works is known to receive a majority of its funding from foreign sources in the past as reported by the Canadian Revenue Agency.
According to the National Post, Hindy, himself, said that the funding comes from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf States. This means the mosque is funded by Salafist Muslims who are devoted to Sharia Law and seeing it practiced everywhere in the world.
Remains of 132 sacrificed Chimu children found in north Peru
This is the second such finding in less than a year within a mile
This is what happens when we invent our own gods, or worship some evil spirit.
This is what happens when we invent our own gods, or worship some evil spirit.
It's always the children who pay the price for man's madness.
By Renzo Pipoli
Archaeologists found evidence of a massive child sacrifice near the north Peru coastal town of Huanchaco.
Image courtesy LorettaLynn/Pixabay/UPI
The remains, along with those of 260 young llamas, were found near the coastal town of Huanchaco, about 352 miles northwest of Lima, El Comercio reported Tuesday.
"This is about four sacrifice events carried out between 1200 and 1520, or one per century. This shows that even after the Inca conquest they continued with human sacrifices," archaeologist Gabriel Prieto told the newspaper.
"We have found 10 tombs, apparently children from the Chimu elite, because they were buried with artifacts and painted clothes."
The children's ages varied between 5 and 14 years, he added.
While the findings were made on the coast, they included seeds and feathers from the Amazon region located on the other side of the Andes mountains, the report said.
The exploration was financed by National Geographic, and detailed in its February issue.
Last April, National Geographic reported a different finding of 137 children and 206 llamas in the Huanchaquito-Las Llamas area, located about a mile away from the new discovery.
National Geographic said the find is the largest to date in the Americas, and probably the world.
The Chimu, their capital in Chan Chan, created the second-largest empire in the history of the ancient Andes. It's known for its architecture and gold artworks. They also built an extensive irrigation system using canals that made it possible to cultivate desert areas.
The Chimu were conquered by the Incas in 1470. Among the Chimu practices adopted by the Incas were the policy of allowing conquered lands autonomy and certain art features.
Saudi man facing sexual assault charge in Nova Scotia
'fled' after embassy posted bail
'fled' after embassy posted bail
'This is a foreign government interfering with the criminal process,'
says immigration lawyer Lee Cohen
Michael Tutton · The Canadian Press 
The Sydney, N.S. Justice Centre where Mohammed Zuraibi Alzoabi was supposed to appear in court to face charges including sexual assault and forcible confinement. (Robert Short/CBC)
Nova Scotia's prosecution service says Mohammed Zuraibi Alzoabi had $37,500 of his bail posted by the Saudi Arabian Embassy last year in relation to the alleged sexual assault, assault and forcible confinement of the woman between Aug. 1, 2015, and March 26, 2017.
Alzoabi is also facing separate charges of dangerous driving and assault with a car in a December 2015 incident involving a Cape Breton man.
The money the kingdom provided for Alzoabi's bail last year was forfeited when he failed to appear in court last Monday, said prosecutor Shane Russell in an interview from his Sydney, N.S., office.
Well, it's easy to see why Saudi Arabia would want this man back! I wonder how good he is with a saw?
'Fled the country some time ago'
A court document says the sheriff unsuccessfully tried to locate Alzoabi on Dec. 8, and quotes his lawyer at the time, David Iannetti, as saying Alzoabi "fled the country some time ago," even though police had seized his passport.
Veteran immigration lawyer Lee Cohen said in an interview that the likeliest way Alzoabi would have left the country without a passport is with embassy-issued travel documents, as airlines face heavy fines if they board passengers without the government-issued permission or a passport.
The Saudi Arabian Embassy has not responded to emails or telephone calls requesting comment.
Lee Cohen, a veteran immigration lawyer in Halifax, suspects Alzoabi had some help from Saudi Arabia in leaving Canada.
(Brian Higgins/CBC)
"In order for this guy to leave Canada without a passport, it had to be facilitated by the Saudi government, or some government, and there's no reason to believe that any other government would put themselves in this position," said Cohen, who has practised immigration law for decades in Nova Scotia.
"It's intriguing to me as to why the Saudi government would put up bail and then facilitate his departure from Canada before he had an opportunity to complete the criminal process. This is a foreign government interfering with the criminal process."
Chilly relationship between Canada and Saudi Arabia
The incident comes amidst continuing tensions between Saudi Arabia and Canada.
A Saudi teen has been granted asylum in Canada after fleeing from her allegedly abusive family. Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun said last week the Saudi Embassy in Thailand had tried to force her return to the kingdom.
In August, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman expelled Canada's ambassador and withdrew his own envoy after the Canadian foreign minister called for the release of women's rights activists who had been arrested in the country.
The Saudis also sold Canadian investments and recalled their students from universities in Canada.
Disappearing tricks
In the United States, there have been reports of Saudi students leaving the country mysteriously as they faced serious criminal charges.
The Oregonian newspaper has reported recently on the flight last year of Abdulrahman Sameer Noorah, a Portland, Ore., community college student who jumped bail in the case of a hit-and-run death of a 15-year-old Portland girl and apparently fled the United States.
He was being monitored on a GPS bracelet, but someone cut the bracelet and he left the country two weeks before his trial.
The news site reported on Sunday it has found criminal cases involving at least five other Saudis who vanished before they faced trial or completed their jail sentence in the state.
That's just one state! Multiply that by 50?
They include two accused rapists, a pair of suspected hit-and-run drivers and one man with child porn on his computer.
'This is happening more often than maybe we thought'
Shawn Overstreet, a deputy district attorney in Oregon's Multnomah County, said in an interview that during his seven years in his position, he hasn't seen other governments provide their citizens with thousands of dollars in surety.
In the case of Noorah, Overstreet said he viewed a cheque for $100,000 US bail from the Saudi Consulate for the young man's lawyer, which was later used by the lawyer to post bail.
"We're hearing this is happening more often than maybe we thought. We want to make sure this isn't something that continues to happen," he said.
Serious allegations against Alzoabi
The Cape Breton Regional Police said in an email Monday that they've issued a warrant for Alzoabi's arrest for failing to appear for his trial.
Russell, who is handling the sexual assault prosecution in the Alzoabi case, said he can't release many details about the two sets of charges, as neither case has been before the courts.
The woman's identity is protected under a publication ban.
However, the prosecutor said the allegations are serious, and he said the potential penalty for sexual assault is up to 14 years in prison.
"Having the court procedure hang over [the accuser] caused her stress, and it will cause her ongoing stress the longer it lingers," the prosecutor said.
Northern Ireland police urge victims of sexual abuse
to come forward
Even though their offender is likely to get a slap on the wrist
Police in Derry have urged victims of sexual abuse to come forward, even if it happened a long time ago.
Its after David McCallion from Derry, was sentenced earlier today at Derry Crown Court, having been found guilty of child sex offences, including indecent assault and gross indecency with or towards a child.
45 year old McCallion was sentenced to a total of 18 months imprisonment, 6 months of which to be served in custody and 12 months of which to be served on licence. He will also be required to register as a sex offender for ten years.
OMGosh! 6 mo in custody and a year on licence? Did he get a gold watch and a pension too? How many offences are we talking about? Several, it would seem. So the creep gets a few weeks for each offence. That's almost a reward!
Don't the judges in Northern Ireland have any idea how much damage child sex abuse does to a child, or to an adult survivor? This is so pathetic.
Detective Chief Inspector Billy Cross from PSNI’s Public Protection Branch said this afternoon “David McCallion carried out a number of child sex offences between 1994 and 1996 against a 10 year old boy, manipulating and controlling his young victim so that he felt unable to speak out.
“I encourage anyone who has been sexually abused to come forward and report it to police, even if it was a long time ago. We have trained officers who will treat all victims with sensitivity and respect. This case proves that even if a number of years have passed, we can still investigate reports of sexual offences against children and place offenders before the courts so that justice can prevail.”
40 year old rape and murder of 12 y/o results
in 1st degree murder conviction in Canada
By Jon Azpiri, Global News
A jury has found Garry Handlen guilty of first-degree murder in the killing of 12-year-old Monica Jack over 40 years ago.
Jurors were asked to consider Handlen’s alleged confession to an undercover RCMP officer who heard the man say he abducted, sexually assaulted and strangled Jack in May 1978.The alleged hidden-camera confession that jurors watched during the 11-week trial was characterized as false by Handlen’s defence team.
Handlen told a supposed crime boss he grabbed Jack from a highway pullout in Merritt and drove up a hill where he killed her, burned her clothes and left her body.
Crown counsel told jurors in closing arguments that Handlen’s detailed admission to an undercover RCMP officer was not coerced and was motivated by his belief he would escape prosecution.
'Guru in bling' rapist gets life in prison
for death of Indian journalist
By Danielle Haynes
An Indian judge handed down the life in prison sentence to guru Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh and three accomplices. File Photo courtesy of EPA-EFE
(UPI) -- A judge in India sentenced a guru -- already serving prison time for raping two followers -- to life in prison Thursday for killing a journalist who exposed the abuse.
The rape conviction resulted in much rioting from his followers.
Panchkula Judge Jagdeep Singh handed down the sentence to guru Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh and three accomplices -- Kuldeep Singh, Nirmal Singh and Krishan Lal -- for the 2002 slaying.
Prosecutors said the men were responsible for killing editor Ram Chander Chhatrapati five days after he published a letter in the newspaper Poora Sach, which means "The Complete Truth" in Hindi. The letter, written by an anonymous follower of the guru, accused his Dera Sacha Sauda sect of sexual abuse.
Lal gave two guns to Kuldeep Singh and Nirmal Singh, in the presence of Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, to carry out the shooting. Chhatrapati died three weeks later.
The four men were convicted in connection with Chhatrapati's death last week.
Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, nicknamed the "guru in bling," was convicted of rape and criminal intimidation of two female followers in 2017, and sentenced to a combined 20 years in prison.
India has many gurus who say they have mystical powers, but Singh has been linked to controversy. In 2015 he allegedly advocated that 400 of his followers undergo castration to get closer to God.
Or was it so their wives would be available to Singh? I would put nothing past an Indian guru.
Sirsa, India - Singh's Ashram
Israeli child sexual abuse scandal: ZFA speaks out
The belated response by one of the most senior and influential rabbinic figures in the National-Religious community in Israel to a growing sexual abuse scandal has been condemned by the Zionist Federation of Australia as inadequate, irresponsible and unacceptable.
The scandal revolves around the manner in which Rabbi Chaim Druckman, the Rosh (‘head’) of Ohr Etzion Yeshiva and the Centre for Bnei Akiva Yeshivot dealt with complaints against a teacher, Rabbi Mordechai Elon, who was convicted by the Jerusalem Magistrates Court in 2013 on two counts of sexual assault against a male minor.
Following Elon’s conviction, Rabbi Druckman continued to defend Elon until recently, allowing him to continue teaching in the institutions under his supervision.
Over the past two months, new allegations of sexual abuse against children have emerged against Elon, prompting Rabbi Druckman to issue vague statements of regret though, critically failing to apologise for his sustained defence of the abuser.
The ZFA alongside Bnei Akiva Australia stands firm with survivors of sexual abuse in condemning Rabbi Druckman’s inexcusable conduct. We also commend former Chairman of Bnei Akiva Olami, Daniel Goldman for speaking out. We urge Rabbi Druckman to offer an unqualified apology to survivors and to immediately step down as head of Ohr Etzion Yeshiva and the Centre for Bnei Akiva Yeshivot.
Jeremy Leibler
“In Australia, we have heard too many devastating stories of the impact of child sexual abuse through the Royal Commission,” said ZFA President Jeremy Leibler. “Among the survivors are people in the Jewish community, who have not only suffered from the abuse itself, but also from the failure of those in positions of authority to act appropriately.”
Mr Leibler said “It is abhorrent to us that Rabbi Druckman continued to offer his sympathy and support to a convicted child sex abuser, rather than to the survivors. His recent statement only issued in response to a philanthropist who withdrew funding, failed to acknowledge his own wrongdoing or apologise to survivors. This constitutes further abuse and renders Rabbi Druckman unfit to continue occupying a leadership role within the religious Zionist community.”
“Moreover, if the new allegations are proven and occurred after Elon’s conviction, Rabbi Druckman is personally responsible for allowing a convicted sex offender to continue teaching and, by extension, to reoffend,” said Mr Leibler.
I don't know what lawsuit laws are like in Israel, but this would appear to have some good possibilities.
ZFA CEO Ginette Searle said that while such belated acknowledgement of the sexual abuse won’t change what happened, it is a critical aspect of providing justice to survivors.
“It is also a critical aspect of delivering the cultural change necessary to ensure abuse is never condoned or covered up in the future,” she said.
Child sexual abuse advocate Manny Waks also calls out for Rabbi Druckman being stood down.
He said: “This is an insufficient response to the public outcry by Rabbi Chaim Druckman. He still refuses to take any responsibility for publicly supporting (Rabbi) Moti Elon after he was convicted of sexual offences. As we now know, Elon went on to re-offend. Put simply, Druckman has blood on his hands and must be stood down immediately.
"The National Religious leadership has failed abysmally and must undertake an urgent and thorough review to ensure this terrible saga is not repeated. If we are to expect victims within that community to feel comfortable pursuing justice in these cases, the current culture needs to urgently change. And this will commence with a leadership change.”
Exactly!
Alleged child abuser Malka Leifer 'fit to be extradited to Australia' from Israel
The woman faces 74 counts of child sex abuse in Melbourne
By Tessa Fox, Sydney Morning Herald
Two psychiatrists have told an Israeli court that former Victorian school principal Malka Leifer is fit to be extradited to Melbourne to face child sex abuse charges.
The psychiatrists appeared for the state prosecution at a closed-door extradition hearing on Thursday local time.
Leifer's lawyer Yehuda Fried says the defence will argue Leifer is mentally unfit for extradition.
The defence is expected to present three psychiatrists, beginning next Thursday, and the hearing is expected to go until mid-year. "It will not finish next Thursday, this will continue with other experts," Mr Fried said after the hearing. "I think this will go on until at least May or June this year."
Good grief! Put her on a plane and get her back to Melbourne now. This is like a really bad joke!
Rabbi Yitzchak Dovid Grossman has withdrawn his involvement in the case against the former Australian school principal who faces 74 counts of child sex abuse.
Victoria Police want to bring Leifer, who was arrested in Israel in February, back to Australia to face 74 charges of child sexual abuse. The allegations are linked to her time as head of ultra-Orthodox Adass girls' school in Elsternwick, in Melbourne's south-east, in the 2000s.
Leifer flew to Israel but was later arrested there (3rd story on link), and last August was deemed mentally fit to face the extradition hearing.
Dassi Erlich, (3rd story on link) who has accused Leifer of abusing her, stayed up to the early hours on Friday AEDT for news from the latest proceedings. "With several expert witnesses still to take the stand, we pray that the judge will come to the right decision and find Malka Leifer extraditable," she said.
Ms Erlich expressed frustration with the "seemingly endless" case. "Yehuda Fried has promised to bring everything needed under the sun, not just his three expert witnesses, in order to delay the process," she said.
Is it kosher in Israel to do everything possible to evade justice and truth?
Leifer is currently being held in Israel's Ramla prison.
Essex detectives sabotaged child sex abuse investigations through laziness and ‘cynical disdain’ for accusers
Prosecutors claim Essex detectives scuppered probes by
destroying evidence and forging documents
Tom Barnes The Independent
Lee Pollard and Sharon Patterson each deny three counts of misconduct in a public office ( PA )
Detective constables Sharon Patterson, 49, and Lee Pollard, 47, are accused of collapsing a series of cases by telling their superiors false information over a three-year period.
The Old Bailey heard on Thursday how the Essex Police officers, who were in a relationship, went “beyond incompetence” by ruining investigations through “laziness” and attempts at “self-preservation”.
Alexandra Healy, prosecuting, told the court allegations against the pair included the forging of documents, concealment of evidence and misrepresenting investigations to supervising officers.
“The effect was that allegations involving child sex offences were not properly investigated,” she said.
“The motivation appears to have been a combination of laziness, self-preservation and sometimes a cynical disdain for complainants in these child abuse allegations.”
The officers, who live together in Colchester, Essex, each deny three counts of misconduct in a public office between 2011 and 2014.
The allegations came to light when performance reviews were carried out into the child abuse investigation team, in the north of the county, which they worked in.
Ms Healy told the court Ms Patterson and Mr Pollard’s behaviour had gone “beyond incompetence“ and was not because of a “lack of resources” or “insufficient investigative manpower”.
Ms Patterson is accused of falsely representing evidence to her supervisor so no further action was taken against a male suspect and of fabricating a witness statement.
She also allegedly created a false Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) document to deceive her supervisor into thinking a decision had been taken not to charge a second male.
Mr Pollard allegedly removed and destroyed four photographs that were “important exhibits” to an investigation and misrepresented evidence to his supervisor so no further action was taken in a separate probe.
The trial continues.
Yikes! As if child sex abuse survivors needed another enemy.
Essex, UK
Radio reporter "deeply sorry" after naming
Rotherham child sex abuse victim
By David ParkerA REPORTER who broadcast a child sexual exploitation victim's name on a live radio news bulletin has told a court he is “deeply sorry” for the error.
Rickin Majithia, who worked for BBC Asian Network, said he had been “horrified” to learn ten minutes after the bulletin that the name he had given was the woman’s real name when he had thought a pseudonym was being used for her in court.
Sheffield Magistrates’ Court heard today that the CSE victim had gone into “full meltdown” and felt “sick and worried” after she heard the live report naming her.
Victims of sexual offences are entitled to lifelong anonymity under law.
Arif Ansari (43), head of news at BBC Asian Network, is on trial accused of publishing the name of a sex crime victim under the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 1992. The bulletin was broadcast on the BBC Asian Network last February.
Prosecutor Mr Neil Usher told the court it was the first time Mr Majithia had filed a report from a court.
Giving evidence, Mr Majithia said he had found out about the error when he received a call from youth worker Jayne Senior, who told him he had used the victim’s real name.
Mr Majithia said: “I was horrified, I am horrified and I am deeply sorry to the victim and her family. “It’s something I will regret until the day I die.”
Yeah, and so will she!
Mr Majithia emailed the victim after her name was broadcast, apologising for the mistake. In it, he said: “I am deeply sorry for using your name on air. I wrongly thought that in court you were using a pseudonym. I know I should have checked this before broadcast.”
The CSE victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said in a statement read to the court earlier: “I heard the presenter use my full name. I went into full meltdown, panicking and worrying, and I didn't hear anything else that was said. It instantly made me feel sick and worried about what would happen in the future.”
Ansari, of BBC Portland Place, London, denies the offence.
Ansari, however, was responsible for sending out a reporter who appears to have been poorly prepared to be reporting on such horrific matters. IMOA - In my opinion, anyway.
The trial continues.
50 arrested in Yorkshire child sex abuse inquiry
Detectives arrested the suspects in Dewsbury, Batley and Bradford during the past few months in connection to an ongoing investigation.
Allegations are believed to made by seven women who say they were sexually abused as children between 2002 and 2009. All the men were interviewed and released pending further enquiries, according to police.
Detective Inspector Ian Thornes, who is leading the investigation, said in a statement:
“Child sexual abuse and exploitation is an abhorrent and heinous crime and one which affects some of the most vulnerable people in our society.”
He urged others to report any incidents of abuse to police, adding victims would be “listened to, taken seriously and supported by professionals with experience of dealing with these kinds of offences”.
Kirklees, the local council area for Dewsbury and Batley, has already launched an independent review after 20 British-Asian men were convicted in October of rape and sexually abusing children between 2004 and 2011 in Huddersfield.
The investigation coincides with the trial of 10 British-Asian men in Bradford, who have been accused of sexually abusing two young girls in care. The abuse is understood to have begun a decade ago when the girls were teenagers, Bradford crown court heard last week.
Kama Melly QC, opening the prosecution case, said the teens were used for the “sexual fulfilment” of the men, adding they had been subjected to violent and forceful behaviour. The men were also allegedly using drugs and alcohol.
The girls were in Bradford when they met one of the alleged perpetrators Basharat Khaliq, 38. After supplying them with vodka, the three began to meet regularly.
Care workers were aware of Khaliq, but he told them he was aware they were underage and lived in children’s homes.
Melly told the court the girls were “sadly, ripe to be manipulated and vulnerable to exploitation” due to their backgrounds.
The men deny a total of 25 offences, including allegations of rape and inciting child prostitution.
Many cases of grooming gangs have come to light in recent months across the UK, including cases in Rochdale, Telford, Newcastle and Oxford.
In November, six men were jailed for sexually exploiting young girls in Rotherham while an investigation by the Sunday Mirror last March estimated that up to 1,000 girls in Telford could have been sexually abused over the last 40 years.
In the same month, another seven Asian men were found guilty of grooming and sexually abusing teenage girls “on a massive scale” in Oxford.
The Oxford gang were convicted of more than 20 offences including rape and indecent assault between 1998 and 2005. Their five victims were aged between 13 and 15 when the offences started.
Home secretary Sajid Javid announced last year that the Home Office was working with the National Crime Agency to conduct research into potential “cultural factors” that might be behind the ethnic origin of grooming gangs.
I can help with that Mr. Javid - Pakistani, Muslim. That's it!
West Yorkshire, UK
Guam Catholic Church enters bankruptcy
amid child sex abuse claims
By GRACE GARCES BORDALLO Associated Press
HAGATNA, Guam (AP) — Guam's Catholic Church filed for bankruptcy Wednesday, a move that will allow the archdiocese to avoid trial in dozens of child sexual abuse lawsuits and enter settlement negotiations.
Ford Elsaesser, an attorney representing the church, said the Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition was filed with federal court in Guam. The church faces multimillion-dollar lawsuits for sexual abuse from about 190 accusers.
Elsaesser couldn't put a figure on the dollar amount the church is hoping to raise for its settlement. But it said its current assets are valued at $22.9 million with liabilities of $45.6 million. The church also plans to sell non-essential real estate and add the proceeds to the settlement fund.
The Chapter 11 reorganization also allows the church to continue its operations, keeping parishes and parochial schools open, Elsaesser said.
This bankruptcy filing will halt current lawsuits and create a deadline for abuse victims to file new claims before the church settles with accusers.
During the reorganization phase, a notice will be given to everyone who may have a claim but has not filed, Elsaesser said. The deadline to file is estimated to take place in May to June. An unclaimed trust fund will also be established for future claimants who did not file within the bankruptcy deadline, he said.
Last November, Archbishop Michael Byrnes announced the church's decision to file for bankruptcy after mediation efforts to try to settle claims failed. "This path will bring the greatest measure of justice to the greatest number of victims," Byrnes said last year. "That's the heart of what we're doing."
Byrnes said the bankruptcy will provide finality for victim survivors.
When the announcement was made in November, attorney Leander James, who is working with alleged victims in Guam, praised the move. "We welcome the announcement," James said in a statement. "Bankruptcy provides the only realistic path to settlement of pending and future claims."
Earlier last year, the Vatican removed the suspended Apuron from office and ordered him not to return to the Pacific island after convicting him of charges in a Vatican sex abuse trial.
The Vatican didn't say what exactly Apuron had been convicted of, and the sentence was far lighter than those given to high-profile elderly prelates found guilty of molesting minors.
Apuron, 73, has denied the allegations and has not been criminally charged.
Many other churches around the nation have filed for bankruptcy as a means to reaching settlements for sexual abuse lawsuits.
Unfortunately, they will all, probably, continue to operate.
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