State Police Chief (SPC) Loknath Behera has said that the State Crime Branch investigation the sex scandal case involving four clergymen attached to the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church and a homemaker was progressing in the right direction.
The SPC told reporters in Thiruvalla on Thursday that the incidents relating to the case dated back to nine years and the police had been verifying the evidence collected from the victim, her husband, and the priests facing sexual assault charges. Mr. Behera said the investigation had to be foolproof as it involved many social implications.
Two priests move court
Meanwhile, two more priests accused in the case approached the High Court for anticipatory bail. When the petition came up for hearing, the court asked the State government to respond to the petition filed by Fr. Jaise K. George and Fr. Johnson V. Mathew. They said the allegation against them did not disclose an offence of rape or even an offence of outraging the modesty of a woman.
A Crime Branch team probing the case has collected evidence including CCTV visuals from a five-star hotel in Kochi.
The inspection was based on the victim’s statement that she stayed at the hotel along with one of the accused priests.