Christopher Saunders: Former Bishop of Broome charged with another six historical sex assault offences

Former bishop of Broome Christopher Saunders has been charged with six historical sex assault offences concerning allegations he raped a child more than a decade ago. Child abuse squad detectives charged Mr Saunders with three counts of indecent dealings with a child under 13, two counts of common assault and one count of sexual penetration of a child under 13. The incidents are alleged to have taken place with a boy between 2009 and 2010. In October, Mr Saunders pleaded not guilty to 16 charges of indecent assault, three counts of a person in authority indecently dealing with a child and two counts of sexual penetration without consent. In December, the 75-year-old was charged with five more counts of sexual assault, alleged to have occurred in 2016. Mr Saunders faced Broome Magistrates Court on December 23 when he indicated he intended to plead not guilty to the five new charges. His bail was extended with conditions and will he return to court on February 3 to face the new charges. Since the acquittal of Cardinal George Pell in the High Court in 2020, Bishop Saunders has become the highest-ranked Catholic in the country to face a sex crimes prosecution. Mr Saunders was ordained as a priest in 1976 and moved full-time to the Kimberley region before becoming a bishop in 1996. He resigned from his position in Broome in August 2021, but has retained his title and entitlements. In December 2023, more than 1200 rounds of ammunition and a shotgun were allegedly found in Mr Saunders’ Broome home.