A former Nottinghamshire teacher and church minister has been charged with 45 sex offences against children.
Paul Brian O’Neill, of Wroxham Drive, Wollaton Vale, taught maths at the Becket School in Wilford, before leaving the post in 2016.
He was arrested on March 29 this year, while working as a minister with special responsibilities for children at the New Apostolic Church of the UK and Ireland.
He was later charged by Nottinghamshire Police with 45 counts of sex offences against children.
None of the allegations are connected to his work at the school or church.
Mr O’Neill, 57, appeared at Nottingham Crown Court on April 25 to hear the allegations against him, which include 29 counts of arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sex offence.
He also faces a charge of conspiring to rape a girl under 13, a number of child pornography possession and creation offences, and two allegations of arranging or facilitating the travel of another person with a view to exploitation.
The offences are said to have been committed between 2008 and 2016.
Mr O’Neill has not yet entered any pleas and has been remanded in custody until his next appearance at Nottingham Crown Court on June 2.
In a letter sent to parents and carers of children at the Becket School, on Wilford Lane, headteacher James McGeachie wrote: “I have been liaising with the police and I can confirm that the charges do not relate to the Becket School in any way.
“I would like to reassure you that the well-being of all of our students remains a priority for the school.”
The New Apostolic Church is an international Christian church, developed from the Catholic Apostolic Church in 1863 and is led by apostles, based on the style of the early church. It has 20 congregations around the UK and almost 60,000 congregations worldwide.
A statement posted on the church’s UK website read: “At the time a police investigation started, O’Neill was a minister with special responsibilities for children with the New Apostolic Church.
“As soon as we became aware of the allegations, O’Neill was instructed to cease all church activities and he subsequently resigned.
“At the time of writing, we can confirm that the charges do not relate to the New Apostolic Church in any way.
“The New Apostolic Church UK and worldwide Church, takes all allegations of this nature extremely seriously. The organisation maintains a robust safeguarding policy and has established systems to safeguard children and vulnerable people.
“Our church administration and the Chair of the Safeguarding Committee continue to work closely with the relevant police and safeguarding authorities.”
