Cardinal George Pell, the de facto Vatican treasurer and Australia’s most senior Catholic cleric, is being investigated in connection with multiple allegations of child sexual assault that date back four decades, a top police official said on Thursday (Jul. 28).

“The official, Graham Ashton, chief police commissioner of the Australian state of Victoria, confirmed a report by the government-run Australian Broadcasting Corporation that detectives were investigating and had submitted an account of the allegations to Victoria’s Director of Public Prosecutions.

“‘We investigated and are still investigating,’ Mr. Ashton said in an interview with the radio station 3AW in Melbourne, when asked about an inquiry.

“The Victoria police have established a task force that is looking into such allegations in both religious and nongovernmental organizations.”

By Brett Cole, The New York Times — Click here to read the rest of this story.