Diocese Of Camden Accused Of Hiding $20M In Assets: Report

CAMDEN, NJ — A committee representing about 300 victims of child sex abuse is reportedly accusing the Diocese of Camden of hiding more than $20 million in assets amid ongoing settlement negotiations.

The creditors' committee is accusing the diocese of failing to report more than $23 million in assets in a report filed in January, the Courier Post reports. It also claims the diocese is deceiving them about the “dire financial straits” they are facing to avoid a larger settlement, but an attorney for the diocese told the newspaper that was a “contrived claim.”

Last month, the Diocese of Camden reached a settlement with its insurers to provide more than $27 million toward a trust fund that will go to survivors of child sex abuse within the diocese. At the time, attorneys said the diocese’s insurance carriers could offer $140 million or more. Read more here: Camden Diocese Now Proposes $27M For Abuse Victims

The diocese previously offered victims $10 million, but that offer was rejected. It later offered $26 million, before reaching $27 million. Read more here: $26M For Abuse Victims Proposed By Diocese Of Camden

The diocese previously said it had hoped for quick approval from the federal bankruptcy judge, as it says it has paid out $7 million in legal fees over the last year. They add this is money no longer available to the victims.

They also said the diocese's funds are being depleted at a time when it is also dealing with the coronavirus pandemic, which has resulted in layoffs, among other things.

It has already paid $11 million to victims from the mid-1990s to the late 2010s, and $8 million to survivors through the Diocese of Camden's participation in New Jersey's Independent Victim Compensation Program (IVCP), established in 2019.

The Diocese of Camden serves parishioners in Atlantic, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, and Salem counties.