THE family of a dead man accused of child sex abuse on RTE's 'Mission To Prey' programme has called on the Communications Minister to open an investigation into the accusations.
The family of Brother Gerard Dillon told the Irish Independent yesterday that a request made to the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) to investigate his case alongside that of
Fr Kevin Reynolds had been rejected.
The reason given was that the complaint was made more than 30 days after the 'Prime Time Investigates' programme was broadcast.
Verified
But the family of Br Dillon -- who was originally from Clarecastle in Co Clare and died in South Africa in December 2005 -- has now written to Communications Minister Pat Rabbitte asking him to force the BAI to probe how the abuse claims were investigated and allegedly verified by the RTE team.
The BAI investigation -- which has just been completed and sent to RTE -- was ordered by Mr Rabbitte after Fr Reynolds was falsely accused last May of raping a woman in Kenya and fathering her child.
Although the programme was 52 minutes long, the BAI was only asked to investigate the four-minute segment focusing on Fr Reynolds.
He secured an apology and payout as a result of the false claims after a DNA test proved he was not the father.
Last night Amanda Dillon, a grandniece of Br Dillon, said the family didn't know at the time that the BAI existed, or of the 30-day limit.
"It's very difficult for us legally because we don't have any standing because we're trying to defend a dead person," she said.
"We need an investigation through the BAI or an independent investigation. We asked for it to be included in the BAI investigation into the Fr Reynolds segment but they said no."
Ms Dillon said the family has talked to "hundreds" of people who were taught by Br Dillon since the programme was broadcast and has yet to find anyone to corroborate the evidence of one alleged victim, Tyrone Selmon, who appeared on the programme.
Meanwhile, the Irish Independent has learned that a second libel action over the programme is expected to be heard in the High Court in the autumn.
Sources confirmed last night that the defamation case -- which is being taken by former Archbishop of Benin Richard Burke -- will come before the court in November.Dr Burke was accused in the programme of abusing a child when he was a priest in Nigeria. However, he said he had a consensual sexual relationship with a woman.
The case will cause a further headache for the state broadcaster which was hit with huge legal fees and a payout for Fr Reynolds.
Dr Burke, a member of the Kiltegan Fathers in Co Wicklow, claims that he was libelled by the broadcast and began legal proceedings against RTE in December.