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Stany (name changed) was in Class 9 when the church that he attended in Mangaluru got a new parish priest. His name was Cyprian Pinto. “He visited the houses of all the congregation members when he first arrived. He came to our house too. That was the first time he sexually assaulted me,” Stany alleged. At the time, no complaint was lodged against the priest.
Almost three decades later, Cyprian, who had by then become the parish priest at St Vincent Ferrer Church in Valencia, Mangaluru, was arrested on October 17, 2026. He was booked by the Mangaluru South police for allegedly sexually assaulting boys.
At first, five boys from St Vincent accused him of sexual abuse. Later, one more boy from St Sebastian Church in Permannur, Mangaluru, accused Cyprian of sexual harassment, and another FIR was registered against him on November 9.
Cyprian has served in a total of eight churches since he was ordained in 1988.
He had arrived at St Vincent only in May. His absence was conspicuous on September 8, the day of the Monthi festival—an important event for Mangalorean Catholics. The celebrations were led by another priest.
News of the alleged abuse at St Vincent began spreading among Mangaluru’s Catholics around the first week of September. Although the Mangalore Diocese has not officially commented on the action taken against Cyprian after the allegations emerged, people familiar with the developments say he was sent on administrative leave on August 26 and replaced.
These developments sparked intense debate and conversation among coastal Karnataka’s small but influential Catholic community. The accused priest has his share of supporters among the public. But many voices are demanding accountability from the Catholic Church and are horrified at the allegations.
While the current allegations relate to his time at St Vincent and St Sebastian, TNM spoke to others from Mangaluru who allege that Cyprian abused several boys in at least two more churches.
This includes two men who allege they were sexually abused by Cyprian as children and one witness. They recounted how his alleged conduct was known among boys in the community, how attempts to speak up were discouraged, and how a local newspaper reported on allegations against an unnamed priest as far back as 2004.
The current allegations have also triggered attempts to intimidate those speaking out, raising fresh questions about the Church hierarchy’s response, what it knew about Cyprian’s alleged conduct, why he was assigned prominent parishes, and whether children could have been protected had action been taken earlier.
For their safety, we are identifying the two survivors as Stany and Denzel, and the witness as Lancy. We are withholding any facts that may give away their identity. Details of the alleged sexual abuse have been limited to what can be legally described under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
‘Unfit to be priest’
When I asked him how he felt when he heard that Cyprian had been arrested, Stany laughed as he said, “I was very happy.”
“But more than wanting him arrested, I wanted him named and shamed. People used to say that he used to give such good sermons and that he was a very godly person. At the time [it happened], we weren’t financially very good. But today I’m stable. I can tell him, ‘You’re not fit to be a priest’.”
It seemed as if he felt vindicated after years of being unable to ever tell anyone—even the few trusted friends who know about it don’t know all the details. Now, the man had been publicly accused of sexual abuse.
