THE former bishop of Chester would have been questioned over a string of historic sexual abuse allegations if he had been alive, Cheshire Police have confirmed.

The late Hubert Victor Whitsey, whose title covered parts of the south of Warrington, has been investigated over a number of alleged sexual offences against children and adults while he was Bishop of Chester.

The force investigated alleged offences against 13 victims, five male and eight female.

Cheshire Police's ACC Nick Bailey said the Rev Whitsey, who died in December 1987, would have been spoken to by detectives if he was still alive when the investigation started in July 2016.

He said: “Cheshire Constabulary has published a report into the findings of an investigation into allegations of non-recent sexual abuse made against a former Bishop of Chester.

"Operation Coverage focused on allegations made against the late Bishop Hubert Victor Whitsey, which date back to the 1970s and 1980s. They relate to 13 victims, five male and eight female.

"The abuse is alleged to have taken place while the Bishop was living and working in Chester and one incident is reported to have taken place outside of the county.

"An investigation was launched by Cheshire Constabulary in July 2016 following a report from the Diocese of Chester safeguarding officer.

"Further disclosures were made as part of the investigation, which spanned a period of 13 months.

"Allegations of this nature are taken extremely seriously.

"The police have a duty to carry out a proportionate investigation into all allegations of sexual abuse, even if the alleged offences took place many years ago and the person being accused has since died.

"Following a thorough investigation and taking into account all of the information available, it has been established that, if Bishop Whitsey were alive today, as part of the investigation process he would have been spoken to by police.

"This would have been in order to outline the details of the allegations made and to provide him with an opportunity to offer an account of events.

"It is important to remember that this is not an indication of guilt, this is a key part of the investigation process and this happens regularly as part of a case to obtain an account whether this leads to further action or not.

"It is not the role of the police to judge whether someone is guilty or innocent."

One of the alleged victims has since released the following statement.

“When I met Victor Whitsey I was young, innocent, and naïve.

"I longed for his blessing to achieve my wish of a future as a vicar, serving God and the community.

"He told me he agreed I had a calling from God. He also told me he had the power to give me everything I wanted in life and the power to take it all away.

"He then proceeded to abuse me sexually and psychologically. I was powerless to stop him.

“I blamed myself, thought I was the only victim and rationalised that it was my fault. If he was acting with Gods will, I should have enjoyed and welcomed what he did but I didn’t. If he was acting against God’s will, I should have rejected and reported him but I didn’t.

"Whichever way I rationalised it, I was a failure and not worthy of God’s love.

“I told no-one, who would believe a teenage boy’s word against a Bishop of the Church of England?

"I became reclusive and came to the ultimate conclusion 'The prospect of ever seeing Victor Whitsey again was so abhorrent to me that I turned my back on my beloved church and my calling to serve God.

"I self-harmed and have spent a lifetime focusing on resentment and bitterness."

He added: "I cannot see my abuser face trial in a court on earth but I hope that by a public acknowledgement of what Whitsey did to us, the church can learn that they need to adopt a new culture of openness.

"I hope that there will be a public inquiry to understand not only what Whitsey did to his victims but to also learn who knew what he was doing, to what extent his actions were intentionally covered up, and who else was complicit in the crimes that he committed, and for which, I continue to suffer every day of my life.”

A joint statement from the current Bishop of Chester, Dr Peter Forster and the Archbishop of York Dr John Sentamu, said: "We are deeply sorry and apologise to those individuals who have come forward to share their account of abuse by a bishop in the Church of England who was in a position of power and authority.

"We appreciate that it is very difficult for individuals to come forward and to give their account.

"Sexual abuse is a heinous crime, and is an absolute and shameful breach of trust.

"We acknowledge that for survivors, the effects of sexual abuse are lifelong. We are offering pastoral support to all those who have come forward and continue to hold them all in our prayers.

“We have supported the police investigation Operation Coverage, which has been comprehensive, and they have informed us that 'should Right Reverend Hubert Victor Whitsey have been alive today, then the Police would have spoken to him in relation to 10 of the witness allegations.

 “The church will consider what lessons can be learnt from this case and whether any action needs to be taken as a result of what these enquiries have shown.”