A priest sentenced to seven years in prison for abuse of a minor in the Toledo seminary

The priest Pedro Francisco Rodríguez has been sentenced to seven years in prison by the Provincial Court of León for a crime of continuous sexual abuse of a minor. The crime took place in the Minor Seminary of Toledo during the period 2005-2007.

The newspaper El País reported on Friday that the sentence also forces the convicted cleric to pay compensation of 40,000 euros to the victim.. The court has validated the accusations of the affected person, who had Rodríguez as a spiritual guide since he was 12 years old..

In the judicial process, the affected person stated that the abuse began in 2005 and lasted until 2007, when he was between 14 and 16 years old.. The most serious incidents occurred in La Bañeza (León) during a series of 8-day spiritual exercises, although the abuse had previously begun at the Seminary..

During the investigation of the case, the Diocese of Toledo suspended the accused from his teaching duties and transferred him to Peru, where he spent time at the Moyobamba seminary..

The Archbishopric of Toledo issued a statement on Friday after the publication of the sentence, defending its actions since it learned of the accusations.. He assures that he respects the sentence, but also remembers that it is not yet final and that it is likely that it will be appealed, since both parties had expressed their intention to do so if the ruling was not favorable to them..

In the statement, the Archbishopric also expressed its “solidarity with the victim and his environment,” and noted that they are awaiting the final resolution of justice “to act accordingly.”. In addition, they are awaiting the resolution of the Dicastery for Doctrine of the Faith, the Vatican entity that supervises the open canonical procedure and which has not yet concluded “out of respect for the times of the courts.”.

The Archbishopric clarified that since they received the “indirect news” about the case, “the procedures prescribed by current law were carried out to investigate its verisimilitude,” and highlighted that “the same justice dismissed the case on four occasions.”.

Furthermore, he emphasized that at no time has the complainant addressed the diocesan ecclesiastical authority to present a formal accusation at the canonical headquarters against the priest, who was removed from public ministry since the court began the oral trial against him.. “We reiterate our willingness to listen to the victim and welcome their pain and requests,” states the Archbishopric of Toledo.