Sex abuse bishop backed by Charles tries to start new life as a Catholic
‘Constant fear’
A SEX abuser bishop who was supported by Prince Charles has started a new life in the West Country where he hopes to become a Catholic.
Peter Ball, 86, moved into an 18th century property in a Somerset vil-lage after his release from prison last year for abusing 16 young men.
The revelations come days after it emerged Charles had described him as the victim of ‘monstrous wrongs’.
The supportive relationship was detailed in a series of letters given to the child sex abuse inquiry, which heard new claims of an alleged Estab-lishment ‘cover up’ of Ball’s behaviour.
Despite his offences, the former bishop of Lewes and Gloucester is still the recipi-ent of a generous Church of England pension.
Ball last night said he had been forbidden from dis-cussing the ongoing inquiry, which is investigating how he escaped prosecution for decades after his offending came to light.
‘I really would like to talk but I’m under strict orders not to discuss anything that has gone on over the last few weeks,’ he said.
He is living with his twin brother Michael, the former Bishop of Truro, who has been accused of attempting to deter police investiga-tions into his sibling.
A church review earlier this year also accused Michael Ball of overlooking accusa-tions against Jeremy Dowl-ing, a prominent church member who was jailed in 2015 for abusing boys.
The brothers live alone in the property, which is owned by a retired British general’s daughter and her husband, and is on the same plot as a private sports facility used by children. Neighbours said the brothers live a largely solitary existence, occasion-ally dining in a local pub.
One said: ‘Most people know of Peter Ball’s past, but you very rarely see them out and about.’
In an email to friends, the brothers revealed that they are seeking to convert to Catholicism due to their ‘battering’ by the Church of England over its handling of the scandal.
They said they want to ‘live and worship in anonym-ity and without constant fear’. A source from the Catholic Diocese of Clifton, which includes the village where the brothers live, said it is still considering the application amid concerns that welcoming them could prompt criticism.
The brothers previously moved to Somerset in 1997, when they controversially took over a property bought for them by Charles’s Duchy of Cornwall estate.
This came after Ball’s behaviour was first investi-gated by police in 1992, which resulted in him receiv-ing a caution for gross inde-cency and resigning from his post as bishop.
Charles has insisted he had no personal involve-ment in the selection of the property and merely started the rental process.
A report by Dame Moira Gibb into the Ball case last year said the Duchy bought the property ‘specifically’ to house Ball and his brother before they moved out in 2011.
The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse is investigating whether Ball’s coterie of establishment friends aided his return to church life before his even-tual conviction in 2015.
In evidence to the inquiry last week, Charles said he had been ‘deceived’ by Ball and he did not understand that his 1993 caution carried an admission of guilt.
Letters revealed the depth of their friendship, with the prince saying he wished he could ‘do more’ to help Ball while promising to ‘see off’ an unnamed person con-nected to the case.
Charles said he broke off the friendship after Ball’s conviction, claiming only then did he realise the true extent of his offending.