A shamed former bishop was yesterday jailed for more than four years after confessing to ‘deeply shocking’ sex offences against a boy when he was a parish priest.
Anthony Pierce, 84, who retired as Bishop of Swansea and Brecon in 2008, took advantage of the teenager playing the church organ to prey on him.
The victim kept the abuse a secret for 30 years out of embarrassment before finally telling church safeguarding officers in 2023.
The Church in Wales has admitted that it was made aware of a separate allegation of sexual assault against Pierce in 1993 – but did not pass it to police until 17 years later, by which time the alleged victim had died.
It meant Pierce was able to be appointed bishop in 1999, meeting Prince William in 2002 when he presided over a special service to commemorate the Queen’s Golden Jubilee.
The case comes following Justin Welby’s dramatic resignation as Archbishop of Canterbury last November after a damning report found his failure to act meant ‘abhorrent’ serial abuser John Smyth was never brought to justice.
In January Bishop of Liverpool Dr John Perumbalath resigned after two women – one a serving bishop herself – made allegations of sexual misconduct against him, claims he has denied.
Yet to the fury of sexual abuse survivors, the Church of England’s ruling body last month voted to reject full independent safeguarding despite the damaging scandals.
Anthony Pierce, 84, who retired as Bishop of Swansea and Brecon in 2008, took advantage of the teenager playing the church organ to prey on him
The victim kept the abuse a secret for 30 years out of embarrassment before finally telling church safeguarding officers in 2023.
Yesterday a court heard how disgraced Pierce – whose crimes have been branded ‘wicked’ by his successor – is now in failing health and may die in prison.
He was vicar of Holy Cross Church in West Cross, Swansea, in the 1980s and befriended the family of the boy, whom he had christened as a baby.
Pierce would give the boy bear hugs while indecently touching him, making him feel ‘very uncomfortable’, prosecutor Dean Pulling told Swansea Crown Court.
As the abuse went on, the vicar would try to kiss him ‘once a fortnight’, he said.
The victim told the court he became suicidal and alcohol-dependant in his teens.
‘To this day I can remember feeling an overwhelming sense of embarrassment and shame,’ he said.
‘I know he’s responsible for a great deal of how my life has turned out.’
Pierce has heart and eyesight problems and ‘may spend the rest of his life behind bars’ because of his failing health, his barrister Heath Edwards said.
The disgraced cleric – who previously admitted five charges of indecent assault – showed no emotion as Judge Catherine Richards jailed him for four years and one month
The disgraced cleric – who previously admitted five charges of indecent assault – showed no emotion as Judge Catherine Richards jailed him for four years and one month.
She told him: ‘You should have shown care compassion for children, instead you started to groom him, bringing sexual topics into the conversation.’
The Church in Wales has apologised to the victim in the current case and said Pierce now faces action to strip him of Holy Orders.
It stressed that the 2023 allegation was passed straight to police.
Its safeguarding committee has commissioned an independent external review into the way it handled the 1993 allegation.
Rev John Lomas, the current Bishop of Swansea and Brecon, said Pierce had committed a ‘wicked crime’ and a ‘gross betrayal of trust.’
Monique McKevitt, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said Pierce had ‘opportunistically preyed on a young boy’.
