Priest admits sexual harm prevention order breach
Timothy Gardner pleaded guilty to all five charges put to him
- Published
A former priest has pleaded guilty to using an online chat service which discussed having sex with children.
Timothy Gardner, of Medhurst Way in Littlemore, Oxford, appeared at Newcastle Crown Court.
He admitted five charges including encouraging or assisting the commission of an offence, three counts of failing to comply with notification requirements and one count of breaching a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO).
The 52-year-old, previously of Walker Road, Newcastle, was remanded in custody and will be sentenced on 14 March.
Gardner was a close associate of Bishop Robert Byrne, who resigned from the Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle, amid serious concerns over his handling of reports, in December 2022.
A report, external, from the Catholic Safeguarding Standards Agency (CSSA), previously found because of the "inappropriate" association, Gardner had "unrestricted access" to a number of diocesan premises which had "presented a serious safeguarding risk".
Earlier, the court heard how the defendant had used the messenger service Chat IW in June 2022 and sent messages capable of encouraging or assisting the sexual assault of a child under 13.
He had also failed to tell police that he was using two aliases online - Matt and Family Doctor.
This was followed by the discovery in February 2023 that he had acquired four bank cards and had been discovered using four "nicknames" online without notifying officers.
Gardner also breached the terms of his SHPO, which was put in place by Newcastle magistrates in September 2022, by refusing police access to two SD cards.
He was also given a new SHPO restricting his use of internet-enabled devices.
'Condemn crimes'
Following the court case, the Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle said Gardner had "never been a priest" in the diocese or held any roles within it and his status as a Dominican priest had been "revoked.
"Bishop Robert Byrne's relationship with Gardner was thoroughly investigated and rightly heavily criticised as part of the full CSSA review in June 2023," a statement said.
"We condemn the crimes for which Gardner has been convicted."
It added that the diocese had a "zero-tolerance approach to abuse", had "always co-operated fully with the authorities and had acted in "accordance with nationally agreed and stringent safeguarding guidelines of the Catholic Church".
It also said there was a "demonstrable positive impact of strong and new safeguarding leadership" now evident in the diocese.
"Bishop Byrne had previously resigned in December 2022. The present Bishop Stephen Wright has never met Gardner," the statement added.
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