A 79-year-old Roman Catholic priest has been charged with sexual offences allegedly committed at a residence in a small Newfoundland community this year.
Rev. Peter Power is scheduled to appear in provincial court in Harbour Grace, N.L., on Sept. 9 to answer to charges of sexual touching, sexual assault and committing an indecent act involving two teenaged boys, aged 18 and 16 years old.
The offences are alleged to have occurred in a small community on the southern Avalon Peninsula in the weeks prior to the March 8 complaint being received by the RCMP.
Power is retired, but police say he continued to be involved with the Roman Catholic Church, occasionally leading mass in the area.
A release from the archdiocese office in St. John’s says the priest is originally from the archdiocese of Toronto and has been living in retirement in Newfoundland.
The office says in a release that an allegation of improper conduct by a priest is extremely serious, and it is asking members of the public to come forward if they have information that will assist police in their investigation.
Power retired from pastoral ministry in the archdiocese of Toronto in 2010.
Since that time, he has lived in retirement in Newfoundland and has on occasion assisted parishes with pastoral ministry.
The St. John’s archdiocese says due to the seriousness of the charges now before the court, Power’s priestly faculties have been suspended pending the outcome of the court proceedings.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on July 21, 2020.