Washington, Apr 5 (AP) Theodore McCarrick, a once-powerful Catholic cardinal who was defrocked by Pope Francis in 2019 after a Vatican investigation determined he sexually molested adults and children, died Friday, according to Archbishop of Washington Robert McElroy. McCarrick was 94.

The McCarrick scandal created a crisis of credibility for the church, primarily because there was evidence Vatican and US church leaders knew he slept with seminarians but turned a blind eye as McCarrick rose to the top of the US church as an adept fundraiser who advised three popes.

Also Read | Famous Birthdays on April 5: Lily James, Rashmika Mandanna, Hayley Atwell and Jagjivan Ram - Know About Celebrities and Influential Figures Born on April 5.

The Vatican's report on its investigation put the lion's share of blame on a dead saint: Pope John Paul II, who appointed McCarrick archbishop of Washington, D.C., in 2000, despite having commissioned an inquiry that confirmed he slept with seminarians.

The report found that John Paul believed McCarrick's last-minute, handwritten denial: “I have made mistakes and may have sometimes lacked in prudence, but in the seventy years of my life I have never had sexual relations with any person, male or female, young or old, cleric or lay,” McCarrick wrote. (AP)

Also Read | Death Due to Coconut Water: Denmark Man Dies From Brain Infection After Drinking Spoiled Coconut Left Unrefrigerated.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)