Ridsdale too sick to attend court on fresh historical child sex charges

Magistrate Megan Aumair said she had read the certificate and acknowledged Ridsdale was unable to attend on Wednesday, July 10.

"He is in hospital and must be very unwell," she said.

Legal aid lawyer Elizabeth Colliver told Ms Aumair she had made inquiries earlier in the morning about "the current change" in her client's medical circumstances but had no further information.

Ridsdale also failed to appear at a court date in April.

The court heard there were 62 charges in the current matter the former priest is accused of, although some of them were likely to be dropped.

Victoria Police have previously said the 62 charges relate to additional allegations of historical sexual assaults between 1973 and 1981.

They included charges of sexual penetration of a person aged 10-16 and indecent assault - crimes alleged to have taken place in Inglewood and Mortlake.

In 2022, Ridsdale was charged with 24 sexual offences relating to two male victims in Mortlake in 1981 and 1982.

The latest charges, issued in April this year, came as police continued to investigate alleged historical sexual assaults involving six male victims at Mortlake, they said.

Ridsdale is serving a maximum 40 years in prison after previously pleading guilty to sexually abusing at least 72 children during the 1970s and 80s while working as a priest at multiple schools and churches across Victoria.

In 2023 after he suffered a fall and experienced declining health, it was recommended the paedophile priest be placed in palliative care.

Ms Aumair said on Wednesday that proceedings could not advance in his absence and adjourned the matter until August 14.

"We will see if Mr Ridsdale recovers sufficiently to say what he needs to say," the magistrate said, ordering that he did not need to attend court in person but could do so via video link or phone.

"We just need to get him appearing in some way," the magistrate said.