Shrewsbury ex-priest, 78, accused of sex offences against young girl
A 78-year-old former priest from Shrewsbury has been charged with sex offences against a young girl.
Brian Spence, 78, also known as Macduff, a former Church of England priest of Sutton Road, Shrewsbury, appeared at Crawley Magistrates Court in West Sussex to answer a summons alleging that he committed four offences of indecent assault on a girl then aged between 10 and 11 in Warnham, West Sussex, between 1978 and 1980.
He pleaded not guilty to all offences and the case was committed to Lewes Crown Court for a preliminary trial preparation hearing on October 11.
It is claimed Spence indecently assaulted the girl at two locations in Warnham, one of which was Warnham parish church where he was the priest at the time.
Sussex Police officers who investigated the allegations, which were received for the first time in September 2016, have worked closely with the Diocese of Chichester’s Safeguarding Team.
