Polish TV report: John Paul II knew of abuse as archbishop

By MONIKA SCISLOWSKA
Associated Press

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — A television news report claims that St. John Paul II knew about sexual abuse of children by priests under his authority when he was an archbishop in his native Poland. In a story that aired late Monday, Polish channel TVN24 named three priests whom the future pope then known as Archbishop Karol Wojtyla had moved among parishes during the 1970s after they were accused of abusing minors. TVN24 quoted from documents of Poland’s communist-era secret security services, which sought to discredit the Catholic Church. A journalist for the channel spoke with a number of victims and to a person who claimed he informed Wojtyla during the 1970s about abuse by one priest.