A Catholic bishop arrested over the weekend on charges of defrauding a woman of money has been released on bail, according to a police official.

Emeritus Bishop Joseph Minj was arrested on December 11 and kept in jail overnight until a hearing the following day at a magistrate’s residence. He was granted bail on a personal bond the following evening.

RK Prasad, a police official in Ranchi, said the 79-year-old prelate was arrested after a Catholic woman identified as Jyoti Kujur accused him of defrauding her of 1.6 million rupees (US$347,000) in a case that dates back two years.

The prelate retired from active service in 2008.

Church sources in Ranchi said that during his tenure, the prelate had frequently taken personal loans from parishioners to fund various projects, with a promise to repay the loans.

The sources added that Jyoti Kujur had filed her case against Bishop Minj before he could return the money he had borrowed.

Fr Hilarius Barla, vicar general of Khunti diocese and a friend of Bishop Minj, said today that the prelate was now residing in a safe but undisclosed location in Ranchi.

“He is tired and sick after his traumatic experience,” Fr Barla said.