A priest who was sexually abused by another cleric while a trainee has warned parents to keep their children away from the convicted predator.
Defrocked padre James Donaghy, who was sentenced to 10 years in prison in February 2012 and handed an extra two years in 2013 for other sex offences, is now free to live in any town in Ireland.
One of his victims is Fr Patrick McCafferty, a formerly Dublin-based clergyman, who fears for any children near paedophile Donaghy.
Fr Paddy told the Irish Mirror: “He is a sex offender and is on the sex offenders’ register for life and his behaviour is a matter for police.
“But parents should beware of him. People know who he is and parents and families know that they have to be wary of him.
“They know to keep their children safe from harm by him. He has been living in the Lisburn area [of Belfast].”
Former priest Donaghy, originally from Lady Wallace Drive, Lisburn, was released from prison in 2017 after serving five years of a 10-year sentence.
Donaghy was 53 years old when he was found guilty in December 2011 of 23 sex abuse charges against three teenagers - an altar boy and two young trainee priests, including Fr Paddy - on dates between June 1983 and December 2000.
While he was in prison in 2013, he admitted indecently assaulting another boy and was given two more years in jail, to run concurrently.
Fr Paddy, who relocated in recent years from Rathmines in Dublin to Corpus Christi church in Ballymurphy, outside Belfast, said: “He got out after just five years, but justice was served because he was found guilty and sent to jail.”
Fr Paddy revealed he is finally moving on from the post-traumatic stress caused by Donaghy, a decade after his attacker was locked up.
He said: “He is out of my mind at this time of my life. We have to try to heal ourselves.
“After the trial, it took three years to heal. And then he was released just two years later.
“It was very difficult at times. It got very tough and was traumatic for me. I had a hard time after he was found guilty. I almost went under.
“It was horrendous. I had to get my strength back. He will pay when he meets his maker. I hope that he finds repentance in his heart, but I doubt it.”
Meanwhile, Fr Paddy is calling for more work to be done to expose historical abuse in all institutions, repeating his call from 2018 for a wide-ranging public inquiry.
He said: “There is ongoing progress, and I am part of that, because the truth must always be made clear.
“For victims, the truth is very important, and there hasn’t been enough done over the last four years. It is an ongoing battle. People need to heal.”
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