Perv filmed girls' knickers

                  A PAEDOPHILE was behind bars last night after secretly filming up the skirts of 10,000 schoolgirl victims. Engineer Richard Winter, 52, built up a video library of indecent shots over a 25-YEAR period.

                  He used a hidden camera in a bag at shopping centres. Victims came from Surrey, Hampshire, London - and even New Zealand and South Africa.

                  But the sick pervert was finally unmasked when a mum spotted him filming the knickers of her 13-year-old daughter.

                  Winter, of Ashford, Middlesex, was jailed for two years at Guildford Crown Court yesterday.

                  The court heard police found more than 100 videos of young girls' bottoms when they raided his home. One showed him indecently assaulting a girl.

                  Winter was caught in May at a Woolworth store in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey. He had a bag containing a camcorder.

                  Prosecutor Ruby Selva said: "The bag was rigged up so that the camera would record through a gap in the top. He approached a young girl of 13 in the                   toy aisle. Her mother was watching."

                  Katherine Hunter, defending, said: "This man has a perverse interest in schoolgirls and schoolgirls' bottoms. He needs help."

                  Detective Constable Andy Bilton, of the Surrey Child Protection Team, said: "We estimated that in total between five and ten thousand girls were filmed."

                  Winter admitted 38 counts of taking indecent photos of a child and 16 sample counts of indecent assault on a girl under 16.
 

Fiend priest faces jail

Unholy ... evil cleric Hill in his preaching days
                  By DUNCAN LARCOMBE

                  THE priest at the centre of one of the Catholic Church's worst child sex cases was back behind bars last night - after admitting vile assaults on THREE more young boys.

                  Father Michael Hill - ex-chaplain at Gatwick Airport - was warned he faces a lengthy jail sentence after admitting six fresh counts of indecent assault.

                  The 68-year-old was jailed in 1997 after being convicted of similar attacks on nine boys he befriended.

                  The fall-out from the scandal rocked the church as Archbishop Cormac Murphy-O'Connor was attacked for allowing a known paedophile to continue working as a priest.

                  Hill - who served just three years of his original five-year sentence - was rearrested only months after his release in 2000.

Father Fiend ... Hill molested a string of innocent young boys

                  The new victims came forward after reading of his case. Hill had kept silent about the other attacks which dated back to 1969.

                  In a brief hearing at the Old Bailey he finally admitted indecent assault on the three boys who were aged between ten and 14 at the time.

                  He stood motionless as Judge Christopher Moss refused bail and ordered him to be held until Thursday for sentencing.

                  Judge Moss said: "It seems to me in this case the matter of sentence in inevitable. The only issue is an issue of how long."

                  Hill abused a ten-year-old boy in Merstham, Surrey, and was switched to Godalming, where he CONTINUED to assault altar boys.

                  He faces 14 charges, but is only expected to be sentenced for the six he has admitted.
 

Victory on child sex laws

LEERING perverts who trick children into exposing themselves face ten years in jail from today - thanks to a Sun crusade.

Home Secretary David Blunkett will close an alarming loophole in sex laws that allowed paedophiles to gawp at naked children as long as they did not touch.

The Sun alerted Mr Blunkett to the problem by highlighting a shocking case in which a man escaped prosecution even though he enticed two 11-year-old girls into stripping for him.

Along with the incensed mother of one of the girls, we called for a change in the law.

Mr Blunkett is responding with a new offence of Sexual Activity With A Child, carrying a maximum sentence of ten years.

Perverts will be put away even if they do not molest kids - and even if the child AGREES to undress.

A Government source said last night: "The Sun highlighted a very serious problem which David is now solving.

"Children need the full protection of the law from paedophiles."

The new law will be brought in under proposals to be unveiled by Mr Blunkett in a White Paper on sex offences.

It will become a crime for anyone aged 18 or over to indulge in "any activity with a child that a reasonable person would deem to be sexual or indecent in all the circumstances".
 

Call ... Sun campaign on perverts
 

This will include inducing a child to undress "outside the bounds of normal family life".

The offence recognises that kids often obey commands from adults without realising what they are doing.

And it will mean adults bearing the sole responsibility for their actions.

The Sun told of the crucial case in January.

The pervert, a dad-of-two in his 30s, struck when the two 11-year-olds and a pal aged 12 went to his office in a Somerset town to be paid for delivering leaflets.

He cruelly told them they could enter a mail order firm's competition with a £50 prize. But first they had to prove they were 15 by showing him they had pubic hair.

He invited them into a back room and told them to take down their trousers and underwear so he could inspect them.

The 11-year-olds complied but the older girl refused. The pervert told the girls to stay quiet about his leering.

But one blurted out the truth to her mum and a police probe was launched.

Amazingly, the man ADMITTED tricking the youngsters into exposing themselves, knowing full well that cops could not act.

To protect his family The Sun did not reveal the identity of the pervert, who coached children at sport in his spare time.

The disgusted mother of one of his victims said the girls had been  "violated".

Another mum was so angry she lashed out at the paedophile and damaged his car.

But the Crown Prosecution Service ruled out any charge of gross indecency, indecent assault, breach of the peace or harassment.

They said no offence had been committed because there had been no physical contact, violence or threats.

A detective on the case wrote to the girls' families saying: "I am sorry this has been a most unsatisfactory conclusion."
 

Teacher in court on sex charges

By Simon Dudman

A Coventry school teacher has appeared in court to face charges of child sex abuse.

Guy Perry, aged 49, of Broad Lane, Tile Hill, Coventry, went before magistrates in the city for the first time yesterday, to face a total of 16 charges involving girls under the age of 16.

The alleged offences are said to have been committed over the last seven years.

Perry faces 11 charges of indecent assault on girls under the age of 16.

He also faces five charges of "sexual activity (not sexual intercourse)" with girls under the age of 16.

The charges relate to alleged incidents over a seven-year period going back to August 1995. The most recent allegation was made earlier this year.

At Coventry Magistrates Court yesterday afternoon no pleas were entered during the brief hearing. The case was adjourned for two weeks and Perry will next appear before magistrates in the city on November 29.

Perry, who spoke only to confirm his name and address, was granted conditional bail.
 

Peterborough teacher on child porn charges

A SENIOR member of staff at one of the city's most prestigious schools has been charged with child porn offences.

Timothy Coldwell, head of physics at The King's School, in Park Road, is accused of 16 counts of making indecent images of a child.

Today, headteacher Gary Longman said: "We are in a state of shock.

"Members of the school community are appalled and shocked to hear of these allegations, and a feeling of disbelief is shared by all."

Coldwell (31), from Peterborough, was arrested on October 4 this year as part of an investigation into internet child pornography. He was immediately suspended on full pay.

He has been suspended since his arrest.

Mr Longman briefed staff after Coldwell was charged, and wrote to all parents informing them of the situation.

Mr Longman said: "I have reassured parents that the allegations do not involve any other member of the King's community, or any of the equipment owned by the school.

"And his classes are being covered so, in terms of education, children are not suffering."

He said four parents had already contacted him to offer their support "at this difficult time".

Coldwell joined the King's School in September 2001 from Stamford School. The usual background checks were carried out.

Mr Longman added: "Mr Coldwell came with excellent references, and is clearly an able teacher.

"During his time at the school he has established himself as an able and dedicated professional, respected by pupils and colleagues alike."

A spokeswoman for Cambridgeshire police said: "I can confirm a 31-year-old man from Peterborough has been charged with 16 counts of making indecent images of a child."

Coldwell is due to appear before Peterborough Magistrates' Court tomorrow.

Prestigious school with links to the cathedral

THE King's school is widely regarded as one of the finest in the city.

It was founded by Henry VIII in 1541 as the Cathedral School, to educate the choristers at Peterborough cathedral, and a close link with the cathedral is still maintained today.

The Church of England school has more than 890 pupils, including 270 in the sixth-form.

In June 1999, the school was awarded Beacon status for its high level of academic performance.

As well as its academic performance, the school is noted for achievement in music and sport.
 

Paedophile priest jailed for five years

Roman Catholic priest Michael Hill has been jailed for five years at the Old Bailey for sex assaults on boys.

He had pleaded guilty to six charges of indecent assault and a further eight charges involving three victims were ordered to remain on the file.

Hill "systematically abused" boys during the 36 years he was a priest and his victims included a 13-year-old disabled boy.

Judge Christopher Moss said he could not imagine a more serious breach of trust which had resulted in "disgraceful and disgusting" crimes.

The court heard the offences for which Hill, 68, of Lingfield, Surrey, was being sentenced, related to admissions he made at a sex offenders' clinic which he attended following his release from jail.

Those charges left on the file relate to complaints made by people who came forward after the previous court case.

"Throughout his ministry, he systematically abused the children of families to whom he was a spiritual guide," David Jeremy, prosecuting, told the court.

Hill, 68, who retired in 1996, was appearing to be sentenced for six indecent assaults on three boys between 1969 to 1987. He was previously jailed in 1997 for 10 offences against eight boys, and released in 2000 after serving three years of a five-year sentence.

Amid calls for his resignation, the Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, has again apologised to Hill's victims.

The Cardinal, the leader of Roman Catholics in England and Wales, said: "I am deeply sorry for the damage he has done, and to the extent that my decision contributed to any of the damage."
 

Internet porn man jailed
 

Darren Guest...jailed

A PAEDOPHILE data entry clerk was jailed for two years for downloading more than 2,000 pornographic pictures of children.
Darren Guest, 20, used the Internet to build his vile collection of images, and posted adverts online arranging "swops" with other cyber perverts, the Old Bailey heard.
He was involved in a "sophisticated system" of trading the images in an exchange and distribution network.
The children abused were young boys and girls ranging in age from six months to nine years, and the images showed children being abused by adults.
Guest was collared by officers from the Obscene Publications and Internet Unit who arrested him on March 27 last year at his home address in Ham Park Road, Stratford. They acted following an intelligence investigation.
He had made efforts to erase the images – but police were able to analyse his hard disk and discover the sickening Defending, Matthew McDonagh insisted Guest had stopped selling the pictures before he was arrested.
He urged leniency and told the court: "There are clear psychological issues. The sooner this young man is allowed to re-enter society and to gain the professional assistance that he requires the better for all concerned."
Judge Peter Fingret jailed him for two years on each count, to run concurrently. He was also ordered to sign the sex offenders register for ten years on release.
He said: "The material found on your hard drive, in excess of 2,000 images, was made available by you for exchange and distribution and was advertised accordingly.
"You repeated the adverts you placed and were extensively involved in a sophisticated system of exchange of images. Each of the images shows sexual activity between children, penetrative sexual activity between adults and children, and bondage.
Serious
"There was a carefully planned and sophisticated method of exchange between you and the other users of these sites. These images are clear evidence that at some stage serious offences were committed by others involving the exploitation and abuse of children.
"That's the mischief which attaches to these offences. Those who utilise the Internet for such purposes will almost without exception go to prison."
Pc Anne Linton, who worked on the investigation, said: "There were indecent images of both young boys and girls from six-month-old babies to approximately nine years and showed scenes of sexual abuse by adults.
"Some people believe that this type of crime can be committed by using the Internet. They must realise that we can and do trace and identify those involved."
 

Priest sex claim goes to CPS

Allegations of sexual abuse against a Catholic priest in Birmingham have been sent to the Crown Prosecution Service following investigations by police.

Mark Hall, 18, claims he was indecently assaulted by Father Richard Dinnis, 62, who is parish priest for St Catherine of Siena Church in Bristol Street.

Mr Hall, who was 16 when he became friends with Fr Dinnis, alleges the priest abused him during a four-day trip to Buckfast Abbey near Plymouth, and on another occasion.

Archdiocese of Birmingham spokesman Peter Jennings said today that police had interviewed both Mark Hall and Fr Dinnis following the complaint.

A West Midlands Police spokeswoman confirmed: "A file has been submitted to the CPS."

Fr Dinnis has rejected claims that he had a sexual relationship with Mr Hall but admitted writing a letter to his parents with an "abject apology" for the "inappropriateness of his behaviour".

A second allegation against Fr Dinnis, made by a 15-year-old boy, was dismissed by police.
 

Postie's child porn shame

By Staff Reporter, Evening Mail

The interception of a pornographic video from Holland led to the home of a Birmingham postman who had downloaded obscene images of children.

Matthew McCusker was told by Judge David McCarthy: "By making these images and possessing them you are contributing to the abuse which these children suffered at the hands of those responsible in the beginning for making the photographs.

"If there were no customers like yourself there would be no abuse."

He ordered McCusker to be put on a community rehabilitation order for three years and to register as a sex offender for five years.

McCusker, 49, of Shylton Grove, Weoley Castle, pleaded guilty at Birmingham Crown Court to one charge of importing an obscene video, six of making indecent photos and six of possessing them.

Peter Cooper, prosecuting, said that customs officers intercepted a video tape addressed to McCusker.

Customs and police raided McCusker's home where they seized his computer and a large number of pornographic DVDs and videos.
 

Jailed for rape filth

A disgraced former school bus driver downloaded revolting images of young girls being raped while he was on probation for having sex with a schoolgirl, a court heard.

Michael Grosvenor was jailed for two years after pleading guilty at Warwick Crown Court to 18 charges of possessing indecent images of children and one of making an indecent image. Grosvenor, 31, of Sansome Road, Shirley, Solihull, was ordered to register as a sex offender for ten years.

Judge Richard Cole also made him subject to a three-year extension to the time he is on licence, and liable to be recalled to jail if his behaviour gives cause for concern, after his release. He told Grosvenor: photographs are quite revolting, and they depict acts of a very serious nature being committed against these children."

Andrew Lockhart, prosecuting, said that in 1999 Grosvenor was working as a school bus driver.

He befriended a 15-year-old girl who he then encouraged to go back to his home where he had sex with her on a number of occasions.

He was put on probation for three years with a condition of attending a sex offenders' programme after pleading guilty to three charges of unlawful sexual intercourse. But during this time and his probation he was having sex with the girl and was downloading child pornography.

A team from the police paedophile unit raided his flat after receiving intelligence that he had accessed child porn sites on the internet and downloaded images after paying for them with his credit card.

The officers found 10,000 indecent images.

Andrew Tucker, defending, said: "He accepts he has admitted disgraceful and highly unattractive conduct.

"When someone has an urge of this sort it is very difficult for that person to bring it under control."
 

Girl 'assault' by school man

Police were today investigating alleged bottom-pinching of a nine-year-old girl at a Birmingham school.

Child protection measures have been put into place at the school in the north of the city.

Parents were notified of the investigation in a letter circulated by the chairman of governors on Wednesday.

It said the primary school was responding to the "concerns of some parents regarding an alleged child protection incident".

It is understood that the alleged assault relates to a male member of the school's non-teaching staff.

Two parents, neither of whom wished to be named, said the girl allegedly had her bottom pinched by the member of staff as she came out of a toilet.

She is believed to have suffered bruising in the incident last week.

One of the parents said: "A lot of the mums are concerned that this person has not been suspended.

"We understand that he has since been escorted off the school premises, but it isn't right that stronger action hasn't been taken."

A Birmingham education spokeswoman said: "An incident at the school is being investigated by the police.

"The school has followed all the appropriate procedures. No-one has been suspended at this time although one member of staff is not in school."

The letter from the chairman of governors said: "I am writing in response to the concerns of some parents regarding an alleged child protection incident in school.

"I can assure you that the head teacher has contacted all relevant agencies including the local education authority, and is acting on their advice.

"I do hope the situation will be resolved quickly and can assure you that the safety of your children is always of most importance to us.
 

Priest jailed again for sex attacks on boys

Michael Hill, the Roman Catholic priest allowed to continue his ministry despite warnings of his paedophile predilections, was jailed for a further five years yesterday for sex offences against boys.

Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, now head of the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales, has apologised for "mistakes" when, as Bishop of Arundel and Brighton, he appointed Hill as chaplain to Gatwick airport despite warnings about his attraction to children.

In a letter to The Times yesterday, Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor denied turning "a blind eye" to Hill's activities or that the Church paid "hush money" to the victims. But he conceded that his decision to appoint Hill to Gatwick after receiving conflicting psychiatric reports about his condition was a mistake.

"I acknowledged that two years ago. I do so again. I am deeply sorry for the damage he has done, and to the extent my decision contributed to any of that damage."

He pointed out that strict child protection guidelines introduced by the Church last year following a review by Lord Nolan, were not in place when Hill was actively offending. The Cardinal is resisting pressure from victim groups, among others, to step down. However, Sussex Police confirmed that their inquiry - into the role of the Cardinal while he was Bishop of Arundel and Brighton and into claims that he hampered Hill's prosecution - is still active.

Hill, 68, who was jailed for five years in 1997 for similar offences against eight boys, was told by Judge Christopher Moss: "You are a practising and predatory paedophile who used the vestments of priesthood to disguise your true character."

The judge went on to tell Hill, who admitted six offences of indecent assault against three boys aged between 10 and 16, two of whom were disabled, that the crimes were "disgraceful and disgusting". Four offences happened after his appointment to the airport.

"You employed a considerable degree of planning and cunning to gain the trust of the parents of the children you abused," he said. "I can think of no greater or appalling breach of trust."

Hill who has resigned from the priesthood and may be asked to leave the Church, showed no emotion as he was sentenced at the Old Bailey.

Nine similar charges were ordered to be left on file.

David Jeremy, prosecuting, said Hill was a priest from 1960 until he retired in 1996 and throughout his ministry had "systematically abused the children of families to whom he was a spiritual guide".

Hill who served in several parishes in Sussex and Surrey including regular contact with a Roman Catholic boys' school, was moved from two because of complaints about his behaviour with children. In 1985 he was appointed to Gatwick.

Mr Jeremy said Hill went to great lengths to gain the trust of his victims. He often committed the assaults while tucking the boys up in bed and when he took them to his home or on outings.
 

Teacher in court on child porn charges

A SENIOR teacher at one of the city's most prestigious schools has appeared in court on child porn charges.

Timothy Coldwell, 31, (left) head of physics at The King's School in Park Road, appeared at Peterborough Magistrates' Court yesterday, charged with 16 counts of making indecent images of a child.

The teacher has been suspended from his duties following his arrest last month.

Coldwell, of Hawthorn Close, Newborough, near Peterborough, spoke only to confirm his name and address.

The case was adjourned to a later date, and Coldwell was released on unconditional bail.

As reported in The Evening Telegraph, headteacher Gary Longman briefed staff after Coldwell was charged, and wrote to all parents informing them of the situation.

Coldwell joined the school in September 2001 from Stamford School. He was arrested as part of an investigation into internet child pornography, codenamed Operation Solomon.

To date, three county people have been charged as part of the operation.

Nine other people have been arrested, five of whom are from the Peterborough area.

The five men have all been released on bail and are due to return to Thorpe Wood police station in the next four weeks.
 

Child abuse 'hotspot' claims denied

Birmingham has been a "hotspot" for sexual abuse by priests because the Roman Catholic Church turned its back on the problem, it has been claimed.

A leading victim support group said successive Church administrations in the city had failed to take account of paedophile priests.

But the Catholic Church last night dismissed the claims as untrue and said it was doing all it could to address problems of child abuse.

Margaret Kennedy, founder of the Ministers and Clergy Sexual Abuse Survivors, said Birmingham was one of five dioceses across the country that had attracted paedophile priests in the past.

"My major worry is that there has been no accountability in certain dioceses and, as a result, they attracted paedophiles and abuse hotspots were created," she said.

"A lid was kept on the problem in Birmingham for years. By keeping a lid on the issue, paedophiles felt safe to continue to do what they were doing and more questions need to be asked as to why they were allowed to."

Ms Kennedy added that as well as the West Midlands, the South East had also become a haven for paedophile priests.

Peter Jennings, spokesman for the Archdiocese of Birmingham, yesterday said very few priests moved dioceses, making it impossible for Birmingham to become a hotspot for paedophiles.

"To suggest movement of priests to the archdiocese because it is has been soft on paedophiles is absolute rubbish on all sides," he said.

"We regard one child abuse case to be one too many and believe Ms Kennedy is trying to paint a picture which is simply untrue."

He added that the Archbishop of Birmingham, The Most Rev Vincent Nichols, had made several public apologies for matters concerning paedophile priests since he took over the role in 2000.

He said the Archbishop had met many of the victims of Father Eric Taylor and had introduced an open-door policy in an attempt to stamp out child abuse.

The archdiocese of Birmingham has been plagued by allegations of child abuse in recent years. The most high profile cases included Fr Taylor and Father

John Gerald Flahive. More than a dozen boys were sexually abused by Fr Taylor at the Father Hudson's Home in Coleshill, Warwickshire, in the 1950s and 1960s.

The defrocked priest, who died last year, was jailed at Warwick Crown Court for seven years in 1998 after he was convicted of 18 charges of sexually abusing youngsters.

Earlier this year, Fr Flahive (52) was jailed for nine months and placed on the Sex Offenders' Register for ten years for sexually abusing three young girls in his care over a 17-year period.

And the Archdiocese of Birmingham is also continuing its investigations into Fr Stephen Mellor, a parish priest from Nuneaton, Warwickshire, who was charged with creating computer-generated images of children.

Following the allegations, Fr Mellor disappeared and police have been unable to find him.

** West Midlands Police yesterday confirmed a file had been submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service over allegations of sexual abuse against a Catholic priest in Birmingham.

Mark Hall, aged 18, claims he was indecently assaulted by Fr Richard Dinnis, aged 62, who is parish priest for St Catherine of Sienna Church in Bristol Street.
 

TEACHER IN CHILD PORN ARREST

A TEACHER from Leeds has been arrested in connection with allegations of downloading paedophile porn from the Internet.

Today shocked parents told how they had been informed by letter of the suspension of the 40-year-old junior school teacher.
He was arrested as part of Operation Ore, a police investigation into sales of indecent pictures from US websites.
The man was banned on Wednesday from contacting pupils or staff at Newlaithes Junior school, Horsforth, until the outcome of the police investigation.
Headteacher Ms Sue Morgan wrote to parents of the 200-plus pupils informing them of the suspension.
In her letter she said: "As far as I am aware the police investigation relates to matters not connected with the school. However, the teacher has been instructed not to return to the school under any circumstances or to contact any members of staff or pupils concerning this matter until the results of the investigation are known.
"I will endeavour to keep you informed of any other developments."
One parent, who asked not to be named, said: "I am very shocked. I don't know what to believe."
West Yorkshire Police said the teacher was arrested on Thursday and had been bailed pending further inquiries.
The teacher became the 11th West Yorkshire person to be arrested as part of Operation Ore – launched this spring to targets users of US-based websites.
In August Normanton businessman Richard Brown, 30, was given a three-year community rehabilitation order and placed on the sex offenders register for five years.
Over the last two weeks police have made arrests across West Yorkshire and charged men over Internet porn.
They were: November 11, a 41-year-old from Huddersfield, a 33-year-old from Leeds and a 34-year-old from from Pontefract; November 12, 41-year-old from Leeds; November 13 two Ossett men aged 52 and 31 and a 43-year-old Huddersfield; November 18, a 35-year-old from Halifax; November 21, a 42-year-old from Baildon.
Operation Ore was sparked by Internet discoveries by the FBI in America. Some of the websites were selling horrific images of sexual abuse of children as young as five.
 

Archbishop Conti tells victims to 'forgive abusers'

ARCHBISHOP Mario Conti, Scotland's most senior Catholic churchman, has told victims of paedophile priests and care home workers that they should forgive their abusers. Conti, the Archbishop of Glasgow, told members of a support group for victims of sexual abuse that they should learn from the Lord's Prayer which says: "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us."

It is the latest in a series of comments by Conti which have angered victims, many of whom are suing church-run homes after suffering years of abuse at the hands of nuns, monks and care workers.

Earlier this year The Sunday Times revealed that one abuse victim, Joseph Currie, claimed that Conti turned a deaf ear when he told him he was sexually abused by a care worker at a Nazareth House home in Aberdeen 40 years ago.

Conti, a parish priest at the time, allegedly told the boy to say three Hail Marys and to pray for his abuser. Conti denies the allegations.

Conti has previously described allegations of abuse against nuns who ran the church's network of Nazareth House homes as "fantastical" and motivated by money. He has suggested that the conviction of one nun, Sister Alphonso, in 2000 for abusing children in her care may have been a miscarriage of justice.

Last year Frank Docherty, who runs the support group In Care Abuse Survivors (Incas), wrote to Conti seeking an official apology from the church.

In his reply Conti stated: "Of course that apology should come from those who were responsible for the actions of which you complain.

"On your part, however, there is a need to forgive. That is at the heart of the Christian message, and do we not say in the Our Father 'forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us'? "Unless there is forgiveness on the part of those who have been hurt there will be no true healing. That is the message you need to share with all those who form your association."

One victim claims she was regularly raped by priests on an altar table from the age of five while being held by nuns.

Solicitor Cameron Fyfe is representing almost 700 people who claim to be victims of sexual and physical abuse in homes run by the Congregation of the Poor Sisters of Nazareth, the De La Salle Brothers and the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul.

Keith O'Brien, the Archbishop of Edinburgh, apologised "unreservedly" last year to victms of abuse. But Fyfe said an apology would have to be made by a figure representing the church groups being sued to have legal weight.

The church disputes the allegations, which centre on 40 nuns and 15 monks.

Fyfe's clients allege a catalogue of mistreatment, ranging from beatings as a punishment for bed-wetting to being made to eat their own vomit. Several test cases are going through the Court of Session.

In his letter Conti said that he believes that Catholic care home workers had been unfairly "demonised".

Docherty replied to Conti's letter, accusing him of being "patronising" and deploying "devious hypocrisy and double standards".

a.. Three Catholic schools in Dundee are at the centre of a sectarian row after being excluded from an £80m refurbishment programme. Vincent Logan, bishop of the diocese of Dunkeld, said the decision by Dundee city council was "a severe blow to the Catholic community". Parents were told at one public meeting that some Labour councillors opposed separate Catholic education and that this may have been a factor in the council's decision.
 

Paedophile priest granted early release

A retired Roman Catholic clergyman at the centre of one of Ireland's most notorious church-linked child sex abuse affairs has been released from prison.

James Kelly, also known as Brother Ambrose, of the Brothers of Charity order of the church, was freed from the Curragh prison, in Co Kildare, in line with an order issued by Cork Circuit Criminal Court earlier this month.

Kelly, 77, was jailed for a total of 36 years in 1999 for sexually abusing boys in his care back to the 1950s. He was later sentenced to two other shorter terms for separate similar crimes, and he has also been convicted in a British court.

The former cleric is to be held at a secret address after an agreement between his legal team, the Irish State and a judge at the Cork court. When he was was initially jailed for offences involving young boys, Kelly's prison term was the longest imposed for child sex abuse in Irish legal history.

A review of the longer sentence later controversially reduced it on the stipulation that Kelly was kept at a safe address and that he should also stay out of Ireland for the rest of his life, but the Cork court last week accepted that was not possible.

Publicity surrounding places where it had been proposed to send Kelly resulted in the authorities being unable to send him to Brothers of Charity addresses in Britain or Belgium.

It was agreed between the state, the defence and the court that the location where Kelly is to be housed from today would be known only to them. Victims of the priest have protested at the court decision.
 

'Sex slaver' jailed for 10 years

Kadiu involved himself "in the bottom end of life"

A "sex slaver" who smuggled a teenager into Britain, raped her and forced her to be a prostitute for up to 20 hours a day has been jailed for 10 years.
Albanian asylum seeker Mustapha Kadiu's (left) 15-year-old Romanian victim, who had been passed from pimp to pimp across Europe, came to London thinking she was to start a new life free from selling her body.

But Kadiu, who brought her to London on false papers, "betrayed her, dominated her, controlled and totally subjected her to his will", in a regime of violence and rape, London's Southwark Crown Court was told.

Kadiu, 32, of Harlesden, north-west London, was found guilty of one count of rape, two of indecent assault and two of living off prostitution - involving both the young girl's earnings and money made by his cousin's wife.
 

Edmond Ethemi made his wife work as a prostitute

The teenager worked in string of brothels, seven days a week. She would often not finish until 7am, hand over takings of up to £500 and snatch a few hours sleep before seeing her next client at 11am.

When, on one occasion, she dared question Kadiu's orders, he threatened her with a knife and beat her, the court was told.

Eventually, after months of increasing desperation, a sympathetic brothel maid helped her escape and she reported her torment to police.

Dreadful suffering

Kadiu showed no emotion as Judge James Wadsworth QC, told him it was "very plain" that he had involved himself "in the very bottom end of life and the most unpleasant of crimes".

He said the girl's "dreadful" suffering in Britain was "entirely as a result of your domination of her".

"You gratified your own greed at the expense of young women and this court is bound to impose a sentence that makes it clear to other men undoubtedly doing the same in London that their sentences will be substantial."

The judge added that while he was ordering Kadiu to register as a sex offender for life upon his release from  prison, he was also recommending to the Home Office that he be deported once his sentence was over.

In the dock with him was his cousin, Edmond Ethemi, 21, (left) also of Furness Road, who was jailed for a total of six-and-a-half years for possessing cocaine with intent to supply, and for living on his wife's immoral earnings.

He too would be recommended for deportation upon his release from prison.