The Diocese of Urgell has removed a priest from his pastoral duties and prohibited him from exercising his ministry publicly after he was reported to the Mossos d’Esquadra by a 26-year-old seminarian who accuses him of sexually assaulting him in July 2025. The measures, which will remain in place while the investigation lasts, were adopted on Monday, November 9, fourteen days after the young man filed the complaint with the Catalan police and on the same day the case became public.
According to information published by 3Cat, the Catalan public broadcaster, the accused priest is 54 years old and comes from the Noguera region. The seminarian maintains that the events took place in Barcelona, where the priest had asked him to accompany him to carry out some procedures, shortly after the young man arrived in Spain. The complainant states that the priest had offered him accommodation in his rectory and help finding another seminary, and that after the alleged assault he threatened him not to say anything, claiming he had powerful contacts, and controlled him through calls and messages. The priest has not been publicly identified and there is no record of him having made any statements.
The seminarian’s account, reported by 3Cat, also points to the diocese’s response. According to his version, he requested a parish transfer and was sent to a village in Cerdanya; when he sought psychological help at the seminary, he was only offered a conversation with a nun or another priest, and nearly a year after the events he told the bishop, Josep-Lluís Serrano Pentinat. Seeing no reaction, he sent a burofax to the diocesan office for abuse victims and to several Vatican bodies. Eleven days later, the diocese replied that it would inform the bishop and reminded him that he could go to the police. He filed the complaint with the Mossos on October 26, according to the newspaper Ara, cited by 3Cat.
During the following two weeks, the priest continued to exercise his ministry. 3Cat notes that he appeared in public, alongside the bishop, at the solemn mass of Sant Ermengol, held one week after the police complaint. The diocese did not remove him until the case reached the press, according to the same source. The seminarian has left the seminary and is living in hiding for fear of reprisals, according to 3Cat.
In its statement, reported by Europa Press and Religión Digital, the diocese affirms that on the same Monday it met in person with the complainant, as agreed on October 30, and that he “has been heard and has been able to freely express his account of the reported incident”. The diocese reiterates its offer of psychological and spiritual support, states that it has opened a canonical investigation, and commits to investigating the matter “promptly.” It declares itself willing to listen to, welcome, and accompany the people involved, “while requesting prudence.” According to 3Cat, the diocese also indicated that, after receiving the complaint, it contacted the victim, opened an investigation, and encouraged him to exercise his rights.
The police investigation remains open and, for now, there is no record of any judicial action against the priest, who enjoys the presumption of innocence. The case once again highlights the reaction time of dioceses to abuse complaints, even when the complainant is an adult who depends on the diocese itself for his formation and future.
The seminarian says he warned the bishop months earlier; the diocese removed the priest on the day the case became public.
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