Former Broome bishop Christopher Saunders jailed for six and a half years for abusing two young men

Mixed · 2Christopher Saunders, 76, the former Catholic Bishop of Broome in Western Australia, has been sentenced to six and a half years in prison for sex offences against two young men. 1 2 Mixed · 2He was convicted of one count of sexual penetration (described by the BBC as rape) and 12 counts of indecent assault; Judge Martin Flynn handed down sentences for all 13 offences, with a total effective sentence of six and a half years. 1 2 Mixed · 2He will be eligible for parole in February 2031. 1 2

Left · 1The victims were young Aboriginal men who lived in the Kimberley region, where Indigenous people make up more than 40 per cent of the population, according to the ABC. 1 Left · 1The assaults happened at various places, including the church-owned residence of the then-bishop in Broome and at a retreat known as the "beach house". 1 Mixed · 2The trial heard that Saunders held "shirts-off" gatherings, supplying alcohol and food to young men; the BBC said he systematically groomed the two men, often using church funds and church-owned properties. 1 2

Mixed · 2The court was told he used his feet to touch young men sexually, kissed them on the lips, grabbed their genitals and, in one instance, engaged in oral sex without consent. 1 2 Left · 1Saunders was accused of offences against three men but was found guilty only of charges relating to two of them. 1 Mixed · 2Judge Flynn read part of a victim impact statement in which one victim said, "My head is pounding now, I'm in so much pain"; the BBC also quoted him saying, "I was a toy that he was using." 1 2

Left · 1Judge Flynn said Saunders had disregarded the victims' right to make a free choice about "what they do with their body". 1 Mixed · 2Saunders resigned as Bishop of Broome in 2020 when first accused of wrongdoing, and has been in custody since he was found guilty in August. 2 1 Left · 1He did not give evidence at trial, so police interview recordings were the only occasions on which jurors heard denials from him, and he showed no reaction as sentence was passed. 1

Mixed · 2Both outlets stress his seniority: the ABC called him one of the country's most senior and longest-serving Catholic clerics, and the BBC said he is one of the most senior Catholic leaders in the world to face charges of this nature. 1 2