Francisco José Cox Huneeus (18 December 1933 – 12 August 2020)[1] was a native of Chile and a former archbishop of the Catholic Church.
In 1992, Manuel Hervia, a priest of that diocese, reported to Bishops Alejandro Goic Karmelic and Carlos González Cruchaga, president of the Chilean Episcopal Conference, that Cox had abused boys in La Serena.
When three years passed without an investigation being launched, Hervia informed Archbishop Carlos Oviedo Cavada of Santiago de Chile.
[3] From 1997 to 2002 he performed administrative assignments in Rome and in Colombia, and then left Chile permanently to live at the Schönstatt community's central headquarters in Germany at the request of the Congregation for Bishops.
He said that "His affection and expressiveness awoke suspicions and interpretations around him that made it very difficult for him to continue his work in La Serena", and that he had been unable to alter his style of behavior even when advised to do so by friends and superiors.
[6] In Colombia, where he was working for the Episcopal Conference of Latin America, Cox issued a statement that said: "I apologize for the dark side of me that opposes the Gospel.
[7] He remained a member of the Schönstatt community, whose leaders announced they were ordering a medical evaluation to determine if Cox was fit to return to Chile for legal proceedings.
[4] Cox was the subject of a criminal investigation in Germany with respect to abuse of a minor alleged to have occurred there in 2004,[9] based on a complaint made to the Schönstatt Fathers in late 2017 and referred by them to German authorities and the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.