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Australian political satire group The Chaser caused quite a ruckus in the hours before Cardinal George Pell's funeral.
They turned up to St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney armed with a coffin of 'evidence' to bury alongside the controversial Vatican figure.
The Chaser, a comedy group who is no stranger to close-to-the-bone stunts and gags, decided to attend the memorial service after one of their readers called for them to take the p**s of Pell.
In the short video, Chaser member Charles Firth addressed the camera and hoisted a small, coffin-shaped box filled with boxes labelled 'evidence'.
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“I'm here at St Mary's Cathedral to bury the evidence one last time," Firth explained, before cutting to a shot of him and his fellow unnamed pallbearer approaching the cathedral steps.
They were confronted by security as bystanders filmed the exchange on their mobile phones.
Firth was heard loudly protesting being barred entering and told security that he has 'evidence' to 'bury alongside' Pell.
Firth claimed it's 'what he would've wanted', before telling a security guard to not touch him as he is 'not an altar boy'.
Firth cheekily quipped: "Wait a minute, is this an issue of consent? I don't understand, that's never worried you before."
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As they were ushered away by security, Firth said he'll just take his boxes of joke evidence to another church parish as that's 'normally the way it works'.
Firth was, of course, referring to the Catholic Church's practice of relocating paedophile priests to different parishes to protect them from child sex scandals.
The video referenced the fact that Pell was aware of historic child sex abuse cases within the church and did not act, as per findings in the wake of a Royal Commission.
Additionally, Pell himself was found guilty in 2018 on four counts of an indecent act with a child under 16, and on one count of sexual penetration with two 13-year-old choirboys in Melbourne's St. Patrick's Cathedral in the late 1990s.
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At the time, Pell was the highest ranking member of the Catholic church to be charged with child sex offences.
However, the High Court of Australia granted Pell's appeal in 2020 and quashed his conviction.
He was released from prison and he relocated to the Vatican, where he stayed before his death earlier this year.
The video was quite a hit on Reddit, with users praising the Chaser for keeping the Cardinal accountable in their own unique way.
One user said: "Thanks for holding Pell responsible, even if no one else will."
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A second added: "Nice to see some honesty around the life of someone I've always found totally rePELLent."
A third commented: "Love the security guy in the centre trying not to laugh."
Cardinal George Pell will be buried in Sydney today (February 2).
Mass protests are expected outside and surrounding the church as Pell is laid to rest.
Rachel Lang