102 Dublin priests face child sex abuse claims

Claims of child sex abuse have been made against 102 Roman Catholic priests who worked in the Dublin archdiocese from 1940 to 2006, according to statistics compiled after a review of the church's own records.

The archdiocese said in a statement on Tuesday that following an independent examination of the personnel files of over 2,800 priests, allegations against 91 priests who worked or held appointments in the Dublin region had been uncovered.

Members of the clergy had also been told at recent meetings that suspicions had been raised against a further 11.

"From the information now available, approximately 350 victims have been identified and there are indications of a possible further 40 persons who may have been abused but who it is not yet possible to identify or trace," the statement said.

To date, eight priests have received criminal convictions while 105 civil actions have been brought against 32 priests of which 65 have been concluded and 40 are ongoing.