This one needs some explaining. In 1998, the Catholic priest John Geoghan was defrocked, five years after retiring at the age of 58. He had been accused of sexually abusing boys as long ago as 1968. These allegations were true or substantially true, and in February 1980, Georghan admitted sexually abusing boys two years previously, but instead of reporting him to the police or at the very least kicking him out, the Church placed him on sick leave and sent him for therapy.
He was eventually charged with historical sex offences, in total he was accused of abusing over a hundred and thirty boys including rape, but was convicted only of a relatively minor offence for which he received anything but a minor sentence – 9 to 10 years. On August 23, 2003, he was murdered in prison.
Returning to Sean Murphy, he, his mother and Byron Worth were indicted for making fraudulent claims. Murphy’s mother forged school records in what was a quite sophisticated scam. In November 2001, the two men pleaded guilty; according to the Boston Herald, November 17, 2001, Murphy received a 23 month sentence. His mother died before the trial.
File this one under GIVE ME MONEY.
[For the avoidance of doubt, the Sean Murphy above is not to be confused with Boston Globe correspondent Sean P. Murphy or any other Sean Murphy.]
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