Kerala court gives double life term to Catholic priest for raping 14-yr-old girl

Ernakulam: A catholic priest on Thursday was handed out a double life imprisonment by a special court in Ernakulam for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl multiple times.

According to a report in the Indian Express, this is the first time that a priest from Kerala has been punished under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. The accused had been identified as 41-year-old Edwin Figarez, who was working for the Kottappauram Catholic diocese in Ernakulam.

A popular preacher in his community, Figarez was very active in musical events and had composed several devotional Christian songs. The young girl was also very interested in music and Figarez convinced her to take music lessons from him. He soon started sexually abusing the girl at his parsonage.

The court was informed that Figarez raped the girl several times since January this year and continued to do so until March. The matter came to light only after the traumatised victim mustered enough courage to share her ordeal with her mother.

It was the victim’s mother who took swift action and reported the sexual abuse to the police. A case was registered against the priest in April, which which Figarez went under hiding.

He later surrendered himself and was thrown behind prison bars. His brother has also been sentenced to one year in prison for helping him hide from the law. A government doctor has also been charged in the case for failing to report that sexual assault after she medically examined the rape victim.

Besides serving a double life term, Figarez had also been asked pay a fine of Rs 2.15 lakh.