Police raided Dallas Diocese's "secret archives" because church officials were allegedly hiding information
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The Catholic Diocese of Dallas is defending its response to sex abuse claims against priests, after police raided several of its properties including its so-called "secret archives" Wednesday. Church officials are accused of impeding an investigation.
In January, the Catholic Diocese in Texas named nearly 300 of its priests who had been credibly accused of abuse. Dallas police and the FBI say they launched Wednesday's raid because the diocese hid information about some of those priests from investigators.
Bishop Edward Burns says his diocese is fully cooperating with investigators after Dallas police seized boxes of evidence from three diocese locations.
"I stand confident as the bishop of the diocese of Dallas that we're doing what's right," Burns said at a press conference.
Burns says his diocese is fully cooperating with investigators after Dallas police seized boxes of evidence from three diocese locations. The investigation began last August after allegations of child abuse against local priest Edmundo Paredes became public. Police now say more victims came out against other priests.
According to an affidavit obtained by CBS News, police say they questioned the diocese about missing details in a priest's file from a 2004 abuse case. Only after that inquiry did the diocese reveal 51 pages had been left out which included one victim's claim of sex abuse. The diocese provided those pages three weeks later.
The raid is the second in Texas in just six months. In November, CBS News began investigating the Houston-Galveston Archdiocese and its Cardinal Daniel Dinardo for allegedly covering up priest abuse. One week after our report, police raided the Houston-Galveston Archdiocese.
Following this latest raid Monica Baez, who says she was abused as a toddler in the 70s by her priest, offered hope to other survivors.
"As a survivor, it's, it's, immense. It's huge," Baez said. "Don't let them win, don't let that perpetrator take your life over. And they will have justice in one way or another."
The five priests accused of child sex abuse in the affidavit are no longer in active ministry. The Dallas Police Department told CBS News no arrests were made in the raid, though there is an active arrest warrant for Edmundo Paredes – but he is on the run.