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Law and JusticeEast Timor

East Timor jails US ex-priest for child sex abuse

December 21, 2021

The defrocked priest received a 12-year sentence on charges of sexual abuse of minors, in the first case of its kind in the staunchly Catholic country.

https://p.dw.com/p/44bvK
Former East Timorese president and prime minister, Xanana Gusmao, gives a fist bump to the defendant
Daschbach (center) retained support among East Timor's political elite, including former President Xanana Gusmao (right)Image: Raimundos Oki/AP Photo/picture alliance

A court in East Timor sentenced a defrocked American priest to 12 years in jail on Tuesday over charges of sexually abusing orphaned and disadvantaged children under his care.

It was the first trial of a priest over allegations of sexual abuse in the deeply Catholic country.

What were the charges against the priest?

Richard Daschbach, 84, was accused by over a dozen women of sexually abusing them when they were children at his shelter. 

The shelter was founded in the early 1990s and housed hundreds of orphans and impoverished children.

The former priest faced 14 counts of sexual abuse of children younger than 14.

Defrocked American priest sits on the defendant's chair during his trial hearing at a court in Oecusse, East Timor
The trial began in February but was postponed several times Image: David dos Santos Gusmao/AP Photo/picture alliance

The defendant was found guilty of several sex crimes. A panel of judges had handed down sentences of up to 37 years in jails, but the presiding judge reduced that to 12 years, citing the defendant's age. 

During the trial, Richard Daschbach was under house arrest. The court ordered his immediate imprisonment to prevent any escape attempt.

The judges also ordered East Timor authorities to pay financial compensation to the victims.

A young girl clips the toenails of the now-defrocked Catholic priest at the Topu Honis children's shelter in Kutet, East Timor.
The accusers of Daschbach (left) have not been identified over fears of retributionImage: AP Photo/picture alliance

Why is the case controversial?

The case has caused sharp divisions in the staunchly Catholic nation.

The defendant was once widely revered for his charity work in the Southeast Asian nation. 

But by 2018, the Vatican had deprived him of priesthood status. The allegations of sexual abuse were only disclosed when a local news outlet reported on the case the following year. 

Still, he retained broad support in East Timor, especially among some members of the political elite, because of his support of the country's independence movement. 

A group of human rights lawyers representing the accusers applauded the verdict but said it would appeal, arguing that the sentence should be harsher. "Despite the sentence being too light for the severity of the crimes, the decision of the Court today determined the guilty of the accused," the group, JU,S Juridico Social, said in a statement. 

The ex-priest was indicted in 2018 in the United States on seven counts of engaging in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign place.

His lawyers said they would appeal Tuesday's verdict. 

fb/rt (AP, AFP, Reuters)