A convicted paedophile priest has claimed a gay prostitution ring has been operating within the Holy Roman Church, with clergymen hiring underage rent-boys for sex.
Don Patrizio Poggi, who served a 5-year prison sentence for abusing teenage boys at his Rome parish, also told Italian authorities a former Carabinieri police officer recruited boys for nine clergymen.
Poggi has reportedly handed the names of 20 alleged child abusers in the Roman clergy – including four serving priests and a Monsignor - to the authorities.
The Times reports : "His allegations gained some credibility from the fact he was accompanied by Monsignor Luca Lorusso, an adviser to the Papal Nuncio to Italy, who is himself a confidante of Pope Francis"."
The former police officer is alleged to have procured mostly eastern European immigrant boys from gay discos, saunas and outside a bar near Rome's central rail station known as “Twink”, where he used a vehicle marked “Emergency Blood” to avoid parking fines.
The boys were paid €150-€500 (£130-£425) to perform sex acts in church premises across the capital.
Don Patrizio Poggi, who served a 5-year prison sentence for abusing teenage boys at his Rome parish, also told Italian authorities a former Carabinieri police officer recruited boys for nine clergymen.
Poggi has reportedly handed the names of 20 alleged child abusers in the Roman clergy – including four serving priests and a Monsignor - to the authorities.
The Times reports : "His allegations gained some credibility from the fact he was accompanied by Monsignor Luca Lorusso, an adviser to the Papal Nuncio to Italy, who is himself a confidante of Pope Francis"."
The former police officer is alleged to have procured mostly eastern European immigrant boys from gay discos, saunas and outside a bar near Rome's central rail station known as “Twink”, where he used a vehicle marked “Emergency Blood” to avoid parking fines.
The boys were paid €150-€500 (£130-£425) to perform sex acts in church premises across the capital.
