Carabinieri police on Wednesday
placed under house arrest a former parish priest in the Puglia
city of Brindisi accused of sexually abusing two altar boys as
young as 13.
The alleged offenses date back to 2012, when the boys were
not yet 14, and reportedly lasted through 2014.
Father Giampiero Peschiulli, 73, was unmasked by a
satirical TV show that specialises in stings, Le Iene (Reservoir
Dogs).
The boys' parents filed charges, after Giulio Golia, a
reporter for the TV show, visited the parish on September 15.
The priest barricaded himself inside and called the police.
An online publication, Senza Colonne News, picked up the news,
as did people on Facebook.
Peschiulli left his post after the alleged abuse was
unveiled in October.
Wiretaps also support the accusations of sexual abuse. In
one, the priest spoke to one of the minors involved, who
explained his absence from the parish the preceding Saturday as
being due to homework.
"I understand, I understand. You betrayed me. I
understand," Peschiulli said on the telephone.
Later the priest added, "Yes. You - wait, what is the word
- you seduced and betrayed me".
The priest was implicated when one of the presumed victims
told his story to a teacher his story.
Carabinieri police said reports existed of other alleged
sexual abuse by the priest going back as far as 2002, but can
not be prosecuted due to the statute of limitations.
A relative of one of the alleged victims, now an adult,
said Peschiulli repeatedly groped the 10-year-old boy on his
thighs and near his genitals.
Legal documents seen by ANSA say that parents reported the
priest to the bishop at the time, Monsignor Rocco Talucci, who
"expressed astonishment" that the boys "had spoken at home about
the abuse received, and had invited the victims of the sexual
acts to not report the episode and to not speak about it to
others".
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