Catholic Priest Rapes Boy Under The Age Of Five Years Old. Now He Will Be In Prison For Thirty Years

Arístides Rodríguez Otero

A court in Panama sentenced a former priest to 30 years in prison for the crimes of aggravated rape, obscene exhibitionism and lewd acts to the detriment of a 5-year-old boy, the Prosecutor’s Office reported this Friday.

The Public Ministry of Panama (MP, Prosecutor’s Office), which did not identify the convicted person, pointed out that this case dates back to 2020, when the man served as parish priest of the church in the district of Gualaca, western province of Chiriquí, and maintained under his care to the victim.

The investigation, however, began in April 2021 after a complaint from the child’s mother, the newspaper La Prensa indicated.

In April 2021, the 58-year-old priest Arístides Rodríguez Otero, a member of the clergy of the Diocese of David and parish priest of the Nuestra Señora de Los Ángeles Parish in Gualaca, was imprisoned accused of abusing a child under 5 years of age, such as as indicated by the Diocese of the city of David, capital of Chiriquí.

In a letter, the Diocese of David expressed that it was “very painful that a member of the Clergy” was “allegedly involved in such acts, absolutely reprehensible and for which we express our ZERO TOLERANCE.”

“It hurts us in the depths of our hearts and our pastoral sensitivity, that the alleged victim is a child under 5 years of age, one of those who, according to Jesus, we must protect or it would be better for us to be thrown to the bottom of the sea with a stone. mill tied around the neck,” the statement added, citing San Mateo.

He also said that the ecclesiastical authorities, following the protocols, then proceeded “to suspend Fr. Arístides” as a “precautionary measure” and while the investigations lasted.

Prosecutor Ricardo Jurado said this Friday that the Public Ministry of Panama considers that the former priest received an “exemplary” sentence.