BBC News Latin America & Caribbean
1 November 2013 Last updated at 06:46 ET
Poland’s Catholic bishops last month apologised to the victims of priests accused of paedophilia
Prosecutors in Dominican Republic have asked their attorney-general to extradite a Polish Roman Catholic priest on child-abuse charges involving thousands of pornographic images.
The priest, Rev Wojciech Gil, is accused of abusing seven children.
Authorities say they also found more than 80,000 inappropriate images and videos of children on his computer.
In phone calls to reporters in the Dominican Republic, he has denied the accusations, saying he has been framed.
The priest was in Poland on holiday when the allegations first surfaced earlier this year and has not returned to the mountain town of Juncalito where he led a parish for eight years.
Polish police announced last month they had located the priest but he was not detained, since an Interpol warrant asked only for his location.
Now, Santiago prosecutor Luisa Liranzo told a news conference he was being indicted on charges of abusing seven children.
One of the complaints against the priest alleges he promised children he would take them to the beach and to Europe if they dressed in revealing underwear and appeared in videos and photos.
Another alleges he abused one boy for as long as three years.
The case is complicated by the lack of an extradition treaty between the two countries.
Polish justice officials earlier this month asked their Dominican counterparts to share documents and evidence in the case.
They have launched their own investigation into allegations of paedophilia against Rev Gil and another priest, Archbishop Jozef Wesolowski, who served as Vatican representative to the Caribbean island before his recall earlier this year.
The two men may face trial in Poland.
Earlier this month, Poland’s Catholic bishops issued an apology for clergy who have harmed children.
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Dominicans seek Polish priest Wojciech Gil on child sex rap
The Standard (Hong Kong)
01 November 2013
Dominican prosecutors said they sent a dossier to the attorney general seeking the extradition of a Polish priest accused of child sexual abuse in this largely Roman Catholic country.
Santiago Prosecutor Luisa Liranzo said an indictment alleges that seven Dominican children were abused by the Reverend Wojciech Gil, who led a parish in the mountain town of Juncalito for eight years.
Gil was in Poland on vacation when the allegations surfaced earlier this year and has not returned to the Dominican Republic. The 36-year-old priest has denied sexually abusing children in phone calls to Dominican reporters and suggested drug gangsters in the Caribbean country are taking revenge on him for his educational work.
In recent weeks, Dominican Attorney General Francisco Dominguez Brito requested the collaboration of Interpol and other international organizations in locating Gil so he could eventually be tried in the Dominican Republic.
Last month, Polish police said they located Gil living in a community near the southern city of Krakow after he was sought by Interpol. He was not detained because Interpol only asked to locate him.
To arrest him, Polish police need an official request from Dominican investigators. It was not immediately clear if that request has been made.—AP
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Dominican prosecutors seeking extradition of Polish priest accused of child sex abuse
The Montreal Gazette
31 October 2013
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic – Dominican prosecutors said Thursday that they sent a dossier to the attorney general seeking the extradition of a Polish priest who has been accused of child sexual abuse in this largely Roman Catholic country.
At a news conference, Santiago Prosecutor Luisa Liranzo told reporters that an indictment alleges that seven Dominican children were abused by the Rev. Wojciech Gil, who led a parish in the mountain town of Juncalito for eight years.
Gil was in Poland on vacation when the allegations surfaced earlier this year and has not returned to the Dominican Republic. The 36-year-old priest has denied sexually abusing children in phone calls to Dominican reporters and suggested drug gangsters in the Caribbean country are taking revenge on him for his educational work.
In recent weeks, Dominican Attorney General Francisco Dominguez Brito requested the collaboration of Interpol and other international organizations in locating Gil so he could eventually be tried in the Dominican Republic.
Last month, Polish police said they located Gil living in a community near the southern city of Krakow after he was sought by Interpol. He was not detained because Interpol only asked to locate him.
In order to arrest him, Polish police need an official request from Dominican investigators. It was not immediately clear Thursday if that request has been made.
The father of one of the alleged victims has charged that his son was molested by the clergyman for about three years. A complaint against Gil also alleges he promised other children that he would take them to the beach and to Europe if they dressed in thong underwear and appeared in videos and photos.
Dominican authorities are also investigating the former Vatican ambassador to the Caribbean country, Archbishop Jozef Wesolowski, over allegations of sexual abuse of teenage boys. He too is Polish.
Wesolowski’s whereabouts are unknown since the Vatican removed him as apostolic nuncio Aug. 21 after the allegations against him came to light.
Will Polish justice officials AND Church officials now do the right thing and pack Father Wojciech Gil off to the Dominican Republic to face his accusers and see justice done?
They should, but, will they?
We shall see.