New victims of alleged abuse of Montserrat monk step forward

Five people have so far accused the same individual between the 1960s and the 1990s

Image of Montserrat mountain with the monastery (by ACN)
Image of Montserrat mountain with the monastery (by ACN) / ACN

ACN | Barcelona

January 30, 2019 01:05 PM

New alleged victims of sexual abuse by a Montserrat monastery monk, when they were minors, stepped forward on Wednesday.

Two people told the Rac1 radio station that they were molested by the monk Andreu Soler, in charge of the scouting movement in Montserrat for 40 years and who died in 2008.

One of them stated that in the 1960s and 1970s what Soler was doing with some children was being talked about and said that he knows more people were abused during that period.

With these two individuals, five men have already said they were being victims of sex abuse when minors by monk Soler.

The first was Miguel Hurtado who said he was abused as a child in 1990s when he was part of the monastery scouts.

Local newspapers 'Ara' and 'El Periódico' reported two more cases in the past few days, all of which men.

The victims have reported cases spanning from the early 1970s to the late 1990s.

The iconic monastery atop the famous Catalan mountain has only admitted knowing the events involving Miguel Hurtado and said no other cases has been reported throughout the years.

While Hurtado said the religious site "covered up" the events, monastery sources stated they supported him and made "several phone calls" over the years to his family to learn about his progression.

Committee for possible abuse cases

Last year the monastery set up an independent committee to review possible cases of sexual abuse against minors.

The body - made up of a lawyer, a doctor, a therapist and a monk - will manage an email address where anyone can speak up or raise suspicion about attacks against children at the iconic site.