Priest 'abused' young brothers

3:32am Tuesday 2nd October 2007

A parish priest repeatedly sexually abused two young brothers in his congregation, a jury was told.

Dermot Keaveney, 72, befriended the boys while he was working at churches in Brighton and Hove more than 30 years ago.

The Catholic clergyman is accused of giving the boys treats and taking them for day trips and on holidays before sexually abusing them.

Lewes Crown Court was told one boy was aged between 11 and 15 when the alleged abuse occurred and the other was about 14 and 15.

Gillian Etherton, prosecuting, told the court Keaveney would regularly visit the boys' family home after becoming their local priest and their mother, who was deeply religious, welcomed his help and support.

But the court heard the priest was abusing the children and telling them to keep his perverted behaviour a secret.

Ms Etherton said the first time one of the boys was abused was during a visit to the priest's home where he had given the child gin and tonic. She said Keaveney told the boy: "This is our little secret."

Ms Etherton told the jury: "You may think from the evidence he was trying to buy his silence by giving him money, cigarettes and alcohol."

She said the boy felt he could not complain about the priest's action and said: "He describes how he becomes stuck in this rut of abuse, not liking what was happening but not being able to prevent it because of his family circumstances so he basically shut up and kept quiet."

The prosecution says the abuse continued after the priest left St Francis Church in Moulsecoomb, Brighton, and moved to Surrey in 1981.

Ms Etherton said in order to cope with the abuse, the boy devised a fictional character called Sharon who he became when he was being assaulted.

She said Keaveney went along with the role play and sent off for women's underwear from a catalogue and found the boy a wig to wear.

She told the court the priest became angry and upset when the boy tried to end the abuse and the child received telephone calls from the priest who was crying.

Ms Etherton said the priest became a close friend of the family of the second boy and despite abusing the youngster for five years, made his victim feel guilty.

She said: "He was made to feel like it was all his fault. Unsurprisingly he didn't tell anyone.

"The little boy was told he was corrupting a priest."

The jury heard when Keaveney was arrested he denied all the allegations against him. He said he was a chronic asthmatic and incapable of sexual penetration.

Keaveney, now of Priest's House, St Anselm Churt Road, Beacon Hill, Hindhead, Surrey, denies 15 charges of indecent assault and indecent acts between 1975 and 1982. The trial continues.

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