THE case against a former Celtic youth coach and kit man charged with a child sex offence will be heard this week in a Belfast court.
Jim McCafferty, 71, who now lives in Northern Ireland, was charged with engaging in sexual activity with a child aged 13 to 16 between December 2011 and December 2014.
The case will be heard in Laganside Magistrate’s Court, Belfast, this Thursday.
McCafferty – who also worked at Hibernian, Falkirk and with youth teams – handed himself in at a Belfast police station where he allegedly made a confession.
Since last December he has been in protective custody in prison in Northern Ireland Police Scotland launched an investigation into claims he abused young players in Scotland, and evidence was handed over to Northern Ireland’s prosecution service.
Since allegations of sexual abuse against young players were made public, football authorities have launched their own investigations and measures to ensure that all staff and coaches working with young people have been vetted and cleared under Disclosure Scotland’s Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) scheme.
A Scottish FA spokesperson confirmed it had commissioned an independent review of sexual abuse in football, to learn lessons from the past.
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