Defrocked priest Eric Dejaeger is escorted by police outside the court in Iqaluit, in the northern territory of Nunavut on Jan. 20, 2011.
Photo Credit: PC / Chris Windeyer/Canadian Press

Priest guilty of sex offenses with native children

A former Roman Catholic priest has been declared guilty of 24 sex-related charges involving Inuit children in northern Canada more than 30 years ago.  Defrocked Oblate priest Eric Dejaeger pleaded guilty to eight counts of sexual assault at the beginning of the trial last December.

Dejaeger was a missionary in the small, native town of Igloolik in the northern territory of Nunavut. Witnesses testified he used that position, threatening children with hellfire or separation from their families to lure them into sex.

Although the defense lawyer questioned the credibility of many of the accounts, the Crown argued successfully that there were enough common themes that the stories held together.

The trial was marked by high emotion and reports indicate it was common to hear witnesses howling and weeping outside the court.

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