Christian priest held for sexual abuse of minor boys

K R Rajeev| TNN | Updated: Jul 19, 2017, 09:50 AM IST

KOZHIKODE: Police have arrested a priest for allegedly sexually assaulting two minor boys at a children's home at Meenangadi in Wayanad district.

Fr. Saji Joseph, who had previously served as director of the children's home, had allegedly sexually assaulted the teenage boys aged 14 years when they were residents of the institution last year, police said.

The priest, hailing from Kunduthode near Thamarassery in Kozhikode district, had been on the run after the police registered a case against him last Thursday. He was taken into custody by the police from Mangalore.

Meenangadi police booked the accused under Section 377 (unnatural offences) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Section 9 read with 10 of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) Act and section 75 of Juvenile Justice Act