Pope Leo XIV, the new leader of 1.4billion Roman Catholics, has been accused of ‘looking the other way’ of child sex abuse allegations.

A survivors’ group claims that Robert Prevost failed to act upon accusations of abuse while one of Chicago’s top officials in 2000 and two decades later, while in Peru.

Prevost, then prior provincial of the Order of St. Augustine’s Province of Our Mother of Good Counsel, allowed Augustinian priest James Ray to transfer to St. John Stone Friary.

Ray had faced allegations that he posed a risk to children nine years before and was not allowed to minister to the public, the Chicago Sun-Times reported in 2021.

The friary was only a block away from an elementary school. Ray was later removed from the friary two years later under laws to keep those accused of abuse far from schools.

Prevost did not inform the St Thomas the Apostle Catholic school of Ray’s history, the newspaper said, citing previously sealed records.

The world’s first American pope was a key churchman in Chicago (Picture: AFP)
Two priests in Peru also faced accusations of sexual abuse under Prevost’s supervision, Catholic news outlet The Pillar reported.

Prevost allegedly mishandled allegations dating back to 2007 made by three sisters against a father while he was the head of the Diocese of Chiclayo.

As leader, it was Prevost’s role to oversee complaints and investigate them. He reportedly encouraged the accusers to take their case to the civil authorities while the church investigated, only for the church to shelve the investigation for ‘lack of evidence’.

Lopez de Casas, a victim of clergy abuse and national vice president of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) told MailOnline that the group raised these allegations about Prevost to the 133 cardinals picking the next pope over the conclave.

He said: ‘Staying silent is a sin. It’s not what God wants us to do. Jesus wants us to stop these things, not make a healthy garden for sexual abuse to grow.’

‘He was high on our watchlist at SNAP to make sure he was not selected for pope. But now, here we are,’ he added.

Pope Leo XIV held several key positions in Chicago and Peru (Picture: AP)
The Vatican said earlier today that cardinals discussed sexual abuse before the conclave and considered it a ‘wound to be kept open’.

In an open letter, SNAP called on Prevost to acknowledge the ‘gravity of the role’.

SNAP urged the pontiff to impose a zero-tolerance policy on priests carrying out sexual abuse within his first 100 days as pontiff.

‘You can end the abuse crisis – the only question is, will you?’ the group added.