# Former Australian bishop sentenced to six and a half years for sexual abuse

https://mins.news/en/item/89104

- The Guardian, 2026-10-07 04:42 UTC
- Society
- Original: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/oct/07/christopher-alan-saunders-broome-bishop-sexual-abuse-aboriginal-men-ntwnfb

> Former Broome bishop Christopher Alan Saunders has been sentenced to six years and six months in prison after being convicted of 13 sex offences involving two young Aboriginal men. He can seek parole after four and a half years. Unless an appeal overturns the verdict, he will be Australia’s highest-ranking Catholic convicted of sexual abuse committed while serving as clergy.

## Related coverage

- [Former Australian bishop sentenced for abusing Indigenous men](https://mins.news/en/item/90310) — Al Jazeera, 2026-10-07
- [Former Australian bishop jailed for sexually abusing young men](https://mins.news/en/item/89054) — BBC News, 2026-10-07