Former RUC officer Eddie Gorman, 60, died peacefully at his home in Coleraine on Thursday after being diagnosed with bowel cancer last winter.
Mr Gorman was sexually abused by the Reverend Bill Neely in the 1970s while attending Mount Merrion Church in east Belfast. The Predator also targeted a scout group for which he was volunteering.
His landmark case against the Church of Ireland is the first of its kind, with his lawyers issuing a writ of damages against the Diocese of Down and Dromore over its handling of abuse allegations .
The church settled the case for £100,000 in early December, but Eddie described the diagnosis as a “bittersweet pill to swallow”.
His lawyer Kevin Winters said: Sunday life: “The police and the church worked together for decades to suppress Eddie’s case.
“It was only after hearing a radio interview about my personal experience with the deceased pedophile priest Malachy Finnegan that he attempted to highlight his case again.
William Neely
“His courage in coming forward not only succeeded in uncovering the truth about Neely’s abuse of young boys within the Church of Ireland, but also overturned the myopic view that historic abuse allegations in Ireland were the domain of the Catholic Church. He also contributed to this.
“To that end, he was a valuable contributor to the Historical Clergy Church Abuse Working Group.
“I was present at the meeting and he gave very moving and emotional testimony about the abuse he suffered at the hands of Neely.
“Through his powerful storytelling, he demonstrated leadership, encouraged others, and gave a voice to others.
“Through his unique advocacy work, he left a lasting legacy.”
Schoolboy played by Eddie Gorman
In 2022, Mr Gorman spoke exclusively to Sunday Life about the abuse he suffered at the hands of ‘animal’ minister Neely.
He said Mr. Neely began preying on the pastor around 1973, when he joined the church scouts, and that the pastor regularly forced Mr. Neely and another boy to perform sex acts on each other.
Outside a church in east Belfast, an emotional Eddie relived the horror inflicted on him by the man of God.
Eddie Gorman was targeted by church and scouts
“I have relatives here in the Garden of Remembrance, but I haven’t been able to visit them for a long time because of what happened here.
“It’s difficult because it brings back very hurtful memories.
“The first thing I remember was when Neely put his hand on my right thigh, something I now know was inappropriate.
“I didn’t know it was wrong and I wasn’t at all scared or upset by his actions, but things escalated from there.
“For some reason, I don’t know exactly, I asked if I was starting to touch myself yet.
“I didn’t understand what he was saying, but he explained that he would want to do this when he was older.
The late Reverend William Neely
“He had us perform various sexual acts on each other. While this was happening, he was standing behind me, pushing my back and watching what was going on.
“After Scouting, this became a regular occurrence. We were mostly at the altar or in a seated Bible study, sometimes alone, but more often with another boy. It was.”
Eddie is survived by his partner, children Cathy and Philip, grandchildren Keegan, Rebecca and Thomas, and brother Jim.
Eddie Gorman in his RUC uniform