Cardinal Pell threatened

SYDNEY: Australian Cardinal George Pell, released from prison last week after a court overturned his child sex conviction, was warned by police on Tuesday of online threats against him, as new abuse allegations also emerged.

Pell walked free last week after the Australian High Court cleared him of five counts of sexually abusing two 13-year-old choirboys in the 1990s, ending the most high-profile paedophilia case faced by the Catholic Church.

But on Tuesday, as Pell released excerpts from his prison diary and blamed his conviction on "culture wars" against conservative Christians, a major newspaper reported there was a fresh investigation into the 78-year-old.