The Catholic Bishop of Wollongong, Peter Ingham, says an 83-year-old retired priest convicted for child sexual abuse will be removed as a registered priest. Kelvin Sharkey was yesterday sentenced in Wollongong District Court to at least 15 months jail for sexually abusing an alter boy on three occasions between 1969 and 1975.
The abuse took place while the Reverend Sharkey was the parish priest at St John Vianney's Catholic Church at Fairy Meadow and at St Bernard's Church at Batemans Bay.
Bishop Ingham says he is deeply saddened at the betrayal of trust that occurred.
"He has really come to terms with what he has done ... the whole time that the court case has been going on and it's certainly affected him. He's done a lot of his punishment already as you might imagine and it's going to do more when he is in the jail," he said.
SIC: ABCN