Legionaries of Christ ask to respect presumption of innocence of priest accused of abuse in Mexico

The legionaries of Christ requested to respect the “presumption of innocence” of a priest of his congregation, arrested on June 11 after being accused of abuse in Mexico, and is currently in preventive detention.

In his communicationthe legionaries affirm that “in accordance with the constitutional principle of presumption of innocence, every person accused of a crime must be treated as innocent as long as their responsibility is not demonstrated by means of a final judgment issued by the competent judicial authority.”

Therefore, they ask “society, the media and all the actors involved, that this fundamental principle of the rule of law is respected, avoiding early judgments or conclusive statements while the process develops”.

Although they do not mention it in their June 17 state Mexican media.

The Legionaries of Christ reaffirm “their commitment to collaborate with the authorities in the current legal process and manifests their absolute respect for the decisions of the justice system.”

Preventive prison for the accused priest

In a communication Published on June 17, the Attorney General of the State of Mexico said that the priest is investigated “for its probable intervention in three diverse facts of the crime of rape in the detriment of a minor victim”, which would have occurred in 2004, 2007 and 2011.

The Prosecutor’s Office also specifies that justice has given a term of “three months for the closure of complementary investigation” and that the precautionary measure of preventive detention was ratified, issued in the previous hearing. “

The statement concludes indicating that “the aforementioned facts were denounced before the agent of the Public Ministry, who initiated the corresponding investigation for violation”, after which the arrest of the priest was requested.