THERE have been calls for a full public inquiry into the actions of the Catholic Church, police, education authorities and social services after further victims of Fr Malachy Finegan have come forward.
A solicitor acting for victims of the paedophile priest, who died in 2002, said an inquiry is needed to get to grips "with the enormity" of the scandal of child abuse within the Church and connected institutions.
The Irish News has learned that of the 12 victims of Fr Finegan who originally came forward in the 1990s and early 2000s, only six accepted financial settlements from the Catholic Church with the other six refusing compensation.
Claire McKeegan of KRW Law said since the first victims spoke out publicly in a BBC Spotlight investigation aired last month, she had been contacted by other survivors and witnesses to abuse perpetrated by the Co Down priest.
The Irish News has also been contacted by survivors of the prolific paedophile who have given details of abuse they say was an "open secret" among boarders at St Colman's College in Newry after he was posted there in 1967.
One man who was targeted by the priest more than 50 years ago said even as a young man Finegan was showing an unhealthy interest in young boys.
"His room was beside the J1 dormitory and he would take boys in there and pull a curtain he had hanging behind the door," he said.
"He would have been quite a young man then, but already you could sense that he was evil, even as a teenage boy I knew to try and avoid him.
"That place back in 1967 was brutal, the abuse wasn't just sexual it was physical abuse as well, violence of the most extreme kind, and remember we were isolated and alone - we wouldn't have got home for three months at a time.
"When I heard the recent reports I called out to my wife 'They've got him, they've finally got Finegan'. It's just awful that it took 50 years for the truth to be told."
Bishop of Dromore John McAreavey resigned on Thursday after questions were asked about him saying Mass on the same altar as the priest despite allegations of serious sex abuse being known to the diocese.
The diocese said Fr Finegan "arrived unexpectedly" at the church in Clonduff.
Ms McKeegan said the survivors she represents have "articulated a huge sense of relief and vindication" at the resignation but this was "only a first step".
"The victims demand and deserve a public inquiry which is tasked with powers to get to the truth and enormity of clerical abuse in Northern Ireland," she said.
:: If you have been affected by abuse you can contact Lifeline on 0808 808 8000 or the National Association for People Abused in Childhood on 0808 801 0331. Survivors wishing to tell their stories can also contact The Irish News at newsdesk@irishnews.com or ring 028 90337 544.
