Jailed again: 'Animal' monk abused children in East Lothian residential school

A former Catholic monk who was branded "an animal" has been jailed for seven years after perpetrating a catalogue of abuse and brutality on children over two decades at residential schools.

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Michael Murphy, 88, was convicted of 29 offences of assault, indecent assault and indecent conduct against boys who were housed at St Joseph's School in Tranent, in East Lothian and St Ninian's List D School, at Gartmore, in Stirlingshire.

A total of 20 boys, some as young as seven and eight, were subjected to abuse by the religious brother in the latest prosecution brought against him. Murphy handed out beatings and administered electric shocks to many of the children. Others were subjected to sex attacks.

Michael Murphy - who was Brother Benedict at the time - has now been convicted three times of abusing boys in his care.

Former pupil suing East Lothian council over abuse caused by jailed monk

Murphy's offending began in 1961 and continued until 1981 as he targeted youngsters in care at the homes.

A judge told Murphy: "The witnesses described habitual brutality on your part. You were in a position of trust and power over vulnerable young boys who were placed in these schools by the state."

Lady Carmichael said: "A number of them described enduring psychological harm from their time as pupils, to which your behaviour contributed."

The former St Joseph's List-D school in Tranent

She said: "You are not due to be released from your current sentence until you are 89 years of age and any sentence I impose will result in your imprisonment until you are very advanced in years."

Lady Carmichael said that but for those circumstances she would have imposed a longer sentence on Murphy.

Former pupil details the regime of shamed monk Michael Murphy

The former monk, who was known as Brother Benedict or Brother Ben, had earlier denied a total of 43 charges involving 29 children at the start of a lengthy trial at the High Court in Edinburgh.

But after the Crown withdrew charges during proceedings the jury was required to return verdicts on a total of 33 charges. He was acquitted of committing four offences.

He is currently serving a seven year prison sentence imposed on him in 2016 after he was found guilty of 15 crimes of assault and indecent assault carried out against boys at St Joseph's.

Previously he was given a 12 month jail term after he was convicted of 10 assaults in 2003 carried out against children at the Gartmore institution.

The latest convictions included punching and kicking children, striking one boy with nettles, forcing a boy to put a bar of soap in his mouth and force feeding another at St Ninian's until he was sick and then making him eat the vomit.

Another boy at St Joseph's had his head held under cold water and was pushed into a hole containing urine and excrement.

Others were subjected to cruel electric shocks from a generator and some were seriously sexually assaulted by Murphy.

Murphy claimed that the generator used to administer the shocks was nicknamed "the tickler" by the boys. He told the court: "They enjoyed the current coming through the wires, through their hands. They enjoyed the tickler."

He said he had carried an object made from three long leather boot laces and used it to give boys "just a wee flick on the backside". He said: "You have to have discipline." One former pupil who suffered at his hands described it as "a cat o' nine tails".

One man who arrived at St Ninian's as a child told the court that it looked like Gordonstoun, the independent school attended by Prince Charles. But he added; "It was like Gordonstoun, but run by Nazis."

The former HGV driver, now 67, said that during his time at the school, staffed by brothers of the De La Salle order and civilians, Brother Benedict put his hand in a vice and tightened it leaving him with a cut and crushed little finger. He was later diagnosed with gangrene and the finger was partially amputated.

On another occasion he was linked to the generator with crocodile clips and the monk started winding a handle at "100 mph".

He told prosecutor Leanne Cross: "I thought I was going to die. You can't do nothing when you are getting electrocuted.

READ MORE: Scots monk Michael Murphy, 88, convicted for non-recent physical and sexual abuse of pupils at Stirling and East Lothian schools

One man, who got sent to St Ninian's before his ninth birthday, told police that he was regularly subjected to beatings by the monk. He said: "Brother Benedict was way over the top with the force he used. He was an animal. He beat me in excess of 100 times in the 32 months I was there and that's being conservative."

"The beatings were for swearing or for fighting with boys. Sometimes there was no reason. Sometimes there were a few kicks to finish off," he said.

Some of the boys were sent into the approved school system after becoming involved in petty crime, but others had difficult home backgrounds or were truants. One man explained he was sent to St Ninian's after he was caught stealing a bar of chocolate from a Glasgow shop because he was hungry after truanting.

One abuse victim told the court that Murphy, who was nicknamed "Bootsy" was "nuts" and added: "They were all nuts."

Five of the crimes, involving three boys, were committed at St Joseph's, the remainder occurred at St Ninian's.

Defence counsel Mark Moir QC said Murphy continued to deny his guilt of any of the historical offences. He said that he understood that following the former monk's earlier convictions, particularly that in 2016, others came forward to say they were also abused.

Mr Moir said Murphy's earliest release date from his current prison term was in October next year. Murphy will serve his latest sentence from the expiry of his present jail sentence.

He was placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register indefinitely.

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