The public prosecutor’s office in Cologne has been investigating Cardinal Woelki since November. Another allegation is now being included in the investigation. It is about a statement by Woelkis in court.
The Cologne public prosecutor’s office has expanded its investigations into Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki. This goes back to the criminal complaint of a private individual who accuses the Archbishop of Cologne of perjury, senior public prosecutor Ulf Willuhn told the German Press Agency on Tuesday.
The ad accuses Woelki of having made incorrect statements in his sworn testimony before the Cologne district court in March. The public prosecutor’s office had confirmed an initial suspicion in this regard and connected the new aspect with the ongoing proceedings against Woelki, said Willuhn.
Criminal investigations against Woelki have been under way since November. The allegation of false affidavit is being investigated. It is about the question of when Woelki knew about allegations of abuse against the former Sternsinger boss Winfried Pilz. Woelki has rejected all allegations.
Knowledge confirmed in a letter to Cardinal
According to a report in the “Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger”, the person who filed the criminal complaint points out that Woelki wrote a letter to the prefect of the Roman Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal Luis Ladaria, in 2018. In it he described allegations and suspicions against a priest whom he had promoted to a senior position the year before. Woelki also mentions in his letter that the Archdiocese has become aware of sexual contact between the priest and a certain person. In his testimony in court, however, Woelki assured that he knew nothing about the allegations made by this person, according to the first responder.
The Archdiocese of Cologne had informed the “Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger” that Woelki had signed the letter to Rome, but could not remember having read it. The letter was “created by the Cologne church court alone and independently on its own responsibility”.
No memory of the letter
On Tuesday, the Archdiocese announced that it had taken note of the public prosecutor’s statement. “Now we have to wait for the results of the investigation,” said the Archdiocese. “Cardinal Woelki maintains that he was not familiar with the documents at the time of the proceedings. He also cannot remember the details of a letter to the Vatican that refers to the documents in question.” He expressly supports the clarification and processing of the facts by the public prosecutor.
The trial in which Woelki testified in court in March ended with a success for him in April. The court ruled that the “Bild” newspaper was no longer allowed to publish certain statements in connection with the pastor’s controversial promotion.
Woelki has been under pressure for a long time and is criticized, among other things, for his handling of allegations of abuse. Pope Francis had asked him to submit a letter of resignation to him. To date, however, the Pope has not yet decided whether he will accept this request.
Source: Stern
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