THE NSW Coroner’s Office will investigate the death on Monday of retired Maitland-Newcastle Catholic priest Glen Walsh, only weeks before he was due to give evidence at an historic trial involving a Catholic archbishop.
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There are no suspicious circumstances. Maitland-Newcastle diocese confirmed his death and the Coroner’s investigation but made no further comment. Father Walsh is believed to have taken his own life.
“We have shared the very sad news about Father Glen Walsh with all employees and wish to express our deepest condolences. We hope that the privacy of his parents and his siblings will be respected,” a diocese spokesman said.
Father Walsh was due to give evidence at the trial of Adelaide Archbishop and former Hunter priest Philip Wilson, who has pleaded not guilty to a charge of failing to report information to police between April, 2004 and January, 2006 that may have helped them prosecute priest Jim Fletcher for child sex offences. The trial starts in late November.