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Agence France-Presse
First Posted 06:21:00 04/16/2010
Filed Under: Churches (organisations), Crime, Children
ROME—A priest who pleaded guilty of abusing a girl in Florida in 2007 decided Thursday to abandon duties at his new parish in central Italy, the ANSA news agency reported.
After a meeting with Rodolfo Cetoloni, the bishop of Montepulciano in Tuscany, Vijaya Bhaskar Godugunuru is no longer involved in any of the parish's activities, ANSA said, citing Catholic Church sources.
Godugunuru pleaded guilty in the abuse case in a Florida court, which ordered him to return to his country and barred him from contact with minors.
On Wednesday the lawyer representing the victim charged that the Vatican failed to respond to the mother of the girl who had asked for Pope Benedict XVI's intervention and instead transferred him to Italy.
"Secret, or non-dispositions, are typical of the Vatican’s handling of clergy abuse cases," Jeff Anderson said.
The lawyer said the bishop of Pensacola-Tallahassee, Florida, made it known in 2007 that he had "been in direct contact with the Vatican concerning Fr. Vijaya and are gathering documents to be sent to them detailing the entire incident."
Anderson also said the girl's mother had written an email in August 2006 to the Vatican address for messages to the pope. Her message, posted on Anderson's firm's website...
Read the whole story:
Priest accused of Florida abuse abandons new Italian parish
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