Toronto, Aug 16 (EFE).- Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, is accused of sexual abuse in Canada by a woman who did a scholarship as a pastoral worker from 2008 to 2010, according to a Radio Canada investigation.

His name appears in a class action lawsuit involving 87 other church members and which was filed by 100 victims, many of whom were minors at the time of the events which unfolded largely in the 1950s and 1950s.

The Canadian public broadcaster, CBC, detailed on Tuesday that the woman, identified as “F”, was doing an internship when she coincided with Ouellet, now 78.

“He grabbed me then … his hands on my back and they went down quite low”, says the plaintiff, according to whom on different occasions the cardinal stuck his body against hers, massaged her shoulders or caressed with relish.

These touching took place during public events, which she, who felt “persecuted”, stopped attending to avoid his presence.

The archdiocese said in an email to Radio Canada that it was aware of the allegations against Ouellet, but did not comment.

At the time of the events, he was archbishop and had the final say on hiring staff.

“You have a young woman in her twenties facing a powerful man in a position of authority, then known throughout the world, who was perhaps in his sixties,” explains Alain Arseneault, lawyer for the plaintiffs.

A priest who worked in the archdiocese at the time told Radio Canada that at that time there were already rumors about the behavior of the now cardinal. He was one of the people to whom the complainant told what happened and he assures that he believed him.

Ouellet faces no criminal charges. The lawsuit against him was filed directly with the Vatican in 2021, and although a meeting was organized between the Holy See and the victim, a year and a half later the latter claims not to have been informed of the results of the investigation.

The cardinal was called to Rome and appointed in June 2010 prefect of the Dicastery of Bishops, the body which selects these senior ecclesiastical officials and then transmits the names of the elected to the Pope so that he can make the final decision.