2023-12-06 09:55:00
Father Paul Hansen of the Saint-Donat parish in Arlon, now 75 years old and who emptied the account of a particularly pious parishioner, benefited from a suspension of the sentence and a confiscation of 25,000 euros before the Liège Court of Appeal. He was found guilty of breach of trust and computer fraud. In reality, a sum of 37,000 euros was misappropriated to the detriment of the lady.
A bank card lent by a parishioner
This one, born in 1928, has always been particularly religious and attached to this parish. In fact, a member of his family was deported with the previous priest. She met Paul Hansen in 1992. When she was still able-bodied, she went to all the masses. She helped in particular with tidying up the parish. When the lady was 71 years old, she was placed in a retirement home. Father Paul Hansen visited the septuagenarian every Monday after mass. She was particularly Christian and had even placed a photo of the abbot next to her bed. The abbot also took her to the bank. When the bank forced her to get a card to make withdrawals, she was never able to use it. His state of health deteriorated. In 2015, she lent her bank card to Father Hansen. It was at this time that the disputed withdrawals began. For several years, the lady had been friends with a couple whose man was her late husband’s colleague.
The latter always took care of the lady’s accounting and was kind to her until the end of his life. She sold him her house when she entered a retirement home. He continued to provide him with valuable assistance. He did her shopping and took care of all the payments allowing the septuagenarian to live with dignity and in a pleasant manner. In July 2018, he discovered that the woman’s savings account had been completely emptied. At that time, the abbot no longer went to his bedside at all, although he kept his bank card. In October, the septuagenarian filed a complaint.
Upscale lifestyle
According to the general prosecutor’s office, the abbot then began to visit him again, with the aim of pressuring him to withdraw his complaint. According to the public prosecutor, the abbot had expenses beyond his financial capacity since he used more than he earned. Heard, the abbot admitted that he “lived well.” He visited relatively upscale restaurants very regularly. He said the lady provided him with money to buy the flowers and masses. The general prosecutor’s office stressed that no sum was found in the accounts of the church factory or the parish works of Saint-Donat. The lady never confirmed this version.
The septuagenarian wanted to withdraw her complaint. According to the public prosecutor’s office, she regretted the problems caused to the abbot. According to the magistrate, she was under pressure because no more masses were celebrated at the retirement home following her complaint, but also the abbot represented a moral authority. The lady died in 2020, with empty accounts and while only her friend, a colleague of her late husband, still came to see her. Before the district judges, the abbot denied the facts. The court took into account the age of the facts, the absence of a criminal record on the part of the abbot who has reached a certain age, but also the current state of his finances.
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