French media reported in June that Bishop Georges Colomb, MEP—the bishop of La Rochelle since 2016—is under civil and canonical investigation for an alleged attempted rape that dates from his term as superior general of the Society of Paris Foreign Missions (2010-16). Bishop Colomb denied the allegation.
France 24 now reports that “despite multiple warnings sent to his superiors, MEP priest Georges Colomb became bishop of La Rochelle in 2016.” Father Colomb was superior general of his institute at the time; the “superiors” who received the warnings were presumably Vatican officials. Despite the warnings, Pope Francis appointed him the bishop of La Rochelle, a diocese with 400,000 Catholics—raising the question of whether Pope Francis appointed Colomb a bishop despite the warnings, or Vatican officials failed to disclose the warnings to the Pontiff.