Br. Cosimo Damiano Muratori, age 79, a friar minor and longtime missionary in Central America, was recently expelled from Nicaragua. He has a pending four-year and six-month sentence for sexual assault in Italy and was arrested by authorities as soon as he landed at Fiumicino airport last February 15, 2023.
We have learned about the news and are constantly following the development of the case.
As the Order of Friars Minor, we express full confidence in justice and are ready to cooperate, if necessary.
At the same time, we are close, in the first place, to the victim of violence, expressing our sorrow for what happened several years ago and for the consequences that this has brought and still brings to her life. We are also open to listening and meeting to repair the harm done and to prevent any harm from happening again.
We are also close to our confrere, Br. Cosimo Damiano Muratori with our prayers and are attentive to his health situation.
We are and will always be at the side of the weakest, and as a Franciscan Order we have made concrete choices of prevention and accompaniment by starting the Office of Safeguarding that aims to work with transparency and integrity alongside the assessment and handling of cases of abuse.
Rome, February 17, 2023
Communications Office OFM
Media contact: comgen@ofm.org
Fr. Evódio João, OFM
Director
