By Grâçia Ada Obi
A former Bishop of Swansea and Brecon has admitted multiple counts of sexually abusing a child. Anthony Pierce carried out the abuse in the 1980s when he was a parish priest in the West Cross area of Swansea.
Pierce, who held the post of bishop between 1999 and 2008, pleaded guilty to five counts of indecent assault on a boy under 16 when he appeared at Swansea Crown Court. The 84-year-old defendant, of Coed Ceirios, Swansea Vale, will be sentenced on March 7, 2025. He was released on bail pending the sentencing.
In a statement released after the hearing the Church in Wales said allegations against the cleric came to light in 2023 when the victim made a disclosure to a Church in Wales Safeguarding Officer, and said the disclosure was then passed to the police. The church said at the completion of the criminal case the Church in Wales disciplinary tribunal would consider “further appropriate action” against Pierce.
In the statement the church said: “We acknowledge the bravery of the survivor in coming forward and thank the police, Crown Prosecution Service and the local authority for their careful work in this case. The Church in Wales is appalled at the offences which have been revealed in this case and expresses its deepest sympathy with the victim for the abuse they have suffered.
“It is a cause of the most profound shame that a priest in the Church in Wales should have been convicted of such shocking crimes. Our prayers are with the survivor and with all victims of abuse, whose welfare must always be at the heart of our work. We hope that the manner with which the disclosure was handled when it came to light in 2023 will give confidence that the Church is serious about dealing firmly and decisively with any such cases.”
