The investigation was opened in December 2022 after a report from the Diocese of Paris, and the investigation was entrusted to the Brigade for the Repression of Delinquency against Persons (BRDP). It focused on written exchanges between Monsignor Aupetit and a parishioner who was under judicial protection and whose apparent consent needed to be confirmed.
According to Me Jean Reinhart, Michel Aupetit’s lawyer, there was “never any ambiguity” or “inappropriate behavior” on his client’s part. “Monsignor Aupetit approached the opening of this investigation with serenity because he was certain that it could only end with a file being closed without further action. He can continue to act in his pastoral mission without any difficulty now,” he told AFP.
“No criminal offense”
The former Archbishop of Paris was heard in a voluntary hearing on June 9 and “maintained that he had never had a romantic or sexual relationship with the woman in question,” the Paris prosecutor’s office said on Thursday, in response to AFP’s inquiry.
“She told the investigators that she had a clear memory of the situations mentioned. She considered that they did not constitute any criminal offense and did not file a complaint,” the same source added.
“As nothing could be considered a criminal offense, the prosecutor’s office decided to close the case without further action.”
Monsignor Aupetit, appointed head of the Archdiocese of Paris in December 2017, submitted his resignation to Pope Francis at the end of November 2021, which was immediately accepted, after several newspapers attributed a romantic relationship to him with another woman, a claim he categorically denied. He was also heavily criticized for his handling of human resources in the diocese.
Entering priesthood later in life, at the age of 44 after practicing medicine for 11 years, Michel Aupetit, 72, served in various ministries as a vicar, pastor, and youth chaplain before being appointed bishop.
The archbishop, who had to oversee the fire at Notre-Dame de Paris in 2019, is known for his strict positions on family and bioethics. He has notably supported the “Marches for Life” opposing voluntary termination of pregnancy.
He also had conflicts with the LGBTQ+ community in 2012 during the debates on same-sex marriage.
Still considered a bishop (emeritus) by the Vatican, Monsignor Aupetit has settled in a former abbey in Toulouse after his resignation. According to his counsel, who emphasizes that “the pope has never withdrawn his trust,” he continues to dedicate himself to his pastoral mission by working with associations that help the poor throughout France.
