Statue of late German Cardinal Franz Hengsbach will be removed after allegations of sexual abuse

Published September 22, 2023 9:05 AM

ESSEN, Germany (AP) — Catholic church officials in Germany say a statue of late Cardinal Franz Hengsbach will be removed from outside a cathedral after allegations of sexual abuse against him surfaced. German news agency dpa reported Friday that a memorial for victims of sexual abuse will be created to take the place of the statue, which was erected in 2011. Dpa was citing the dean of the cathedral of the west German city of Essen. The move came after several hours of closed-door deliberations. The German Dioceses of Essen and Paderborn announced Tuesday that they had started investigations into at least three sexual abuse allegations brought against Hengsbach.

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