Former Bishop Jailed for Abusing Two Aboriginal Men

Former Bishop Christopher Alan Saunders, 76, was sentenced Wednesday to six and a half years in prison by Judge Martin Flynn in the District Court of Western Australia in Perth. A jury in August convicted him of one count of sexual penetration without consent and 12 counts of indecent assault against two Aboriginal men. Flynn read a victim impact statement: "I was a toy that he was using" and "My head is pounding now, I'm in so much pain. I can't talk about it." Saunders has been in custody since the verdict and is eligible for parole in February 2031. He was acquitted of charges relating to a third complainant. Flynn said Saunders disregarded the victims' right to make free choices about their bodies and gave character references no weight. Trial evidence described gatherings at Church-owned properties with alcohol and food, some "shirts off," plus wrestling and boxing, touching with feet, kissing on the lips, grabbing genitals, and one instance of non-consensual oral sex. Cherrille Quilty, who alerted police in 2018, said: "It's quite shocking that the Vatican hasn't acted to remove him, we want him excommunicated as quickly as possible." Archbishop Timothy Costelloe said: "We are sorry that your trust was so directly and profoundly betrayed by a leader of the Church." Contested: none found in the record. Police investigated in 2018 without initial charges; the Vatican ordered a Vos Estis Lux Mundi investigation in 2022. Saunders served as bishop from 1996 to 2021 after ordination in 1976.