Former Church of England vicar in his 80s charged with raping boy
18 May 2024, 10:58
A former vicar in the Church of England has been charged with raping a boy.
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Ifor Whittaker, 80, was a vicar at St John The Baptist Church in Sedlescombe, East Sussex, in the late 1990s, the time at which he is accused of assaulting the boy.
Whittaker has been accused of rape and gross indecency with a boy aged 14 or under, and will appear in court on June 10.
He was going by the name Father Colin Pritchard at the time of the alleged offences.
A Sussex Police spokesman said: "Police have charged a former Anglican vicar with rape and gross indecency with a boy under 14 years of age.
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"Ifor Whittaker, 80, was a vicar going by the name of Father Colin Pritchard at St John The Baptist Church in Sedlescombe, East Sussex, at the time of the alleged offences.
"The offences are reported to have taken place during the late 1990s when the victim - now a man in his 30s - was a young child.
"Whittaker has been remanded in custody, to appear at a court to be confirmed on June 10."
