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Rape allegations surface at Japanese Catholic school

Three former students at St. Mary's International School allege abuse by religious brothers who taught there
Rape allegations surface at Japanese Catholic school
Published: April 22, 2016 04:32 AM GMT
Updated: April 22, 2016 04:33 AM GMT

Former students at a prestigious all-boys parochial school in Japan have alleged they were molested or raped by religious brothers who taught there decades ago.

Three former students at St. Mary’s International School in Tokyo told the Associated Press they were sexually abused by brothers there. One described “health checkups” in which a brother touched boys’ testicles. Another says he was raped in the chapel by two brothers at the age of 11.

That former student reportedly received an in-person apology from one of the men, Brother Lawrence Lambert, in 2014. The former student’s account of the meeting suggests Lambert might have initially confused him with another victim whose assault went unreported, the AP reported.

The former student said the school sent Lambert away after the 1965 attack, only to have him return to serve as elementary-school principal for nearly two decades.

Allegations from former students have been published in an English-language Tokyo newspaper but otherwise have received little attention in Japan. There are only about 500,000 Catholics in the country of 127 million, and the school is aimed at foreigners like the three former students rather than Japanese.

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