An investigation has been opened against a canon accused of sexual assault in the early 1990s and the prosecutor's office of Mulhouse (Haut-Rhin) launched Wednesday, May 10, a call for witnesses for other potential victims to come forward.
The 69-year-old clergyman is currently accused of a single act of assault, which dates back to the summer of 1993 and is now time-barred. The victim of the man who was at the time a priest in the Sundgau region, in southern Alsace, was a 13-year-old mass servant.
Our concern is to ensure that there are no other victims.
Edwige Roux-Morizot, Prosecutor of the Republic of Mulhouse
But the latter did not denounce the facts until October 2021, confiding in the Archbishop of Strasbourg Luc Ravel. He made a report to the justice and on October 27, 2021 the prosecutor of the Republic of Mulhouse, Edwige Roux-Morizot, requested the services of the gendarmerie (the research brigade of Altkirch) as part of a preliminary investigation. "Whether it is sexual assault or more serious rape, the facts are unfortunately prescribed, but our concern is to ensure that there are no other victims," said the magistrate at a press conference Wednesday.
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It will be necessary to verify whether in the context of his many activities, the priest would have made other victims, young men or young women. The facts denounced by the victim seem credible. A psychiatric expertise was carried out and gives credibility to his statements. He has long concealed the facts but a malaise has set in, a trauma that finally had to be expressed, "continued Ms. Roux-Morizot. The canon, who denies any inappropriate gesture, "has been in contact with a lot of young people, organized summer camps, in France and abroad," she added.
Call for witnesses
The prosecutor therefore appeals to all persons who could have been victims of touching, regardless of the period. Two telephone numbers are available: 03.89.40.96.39 or 03.89.08.31.81.