Exile from Huli: Thief-priest counted 17 secret mistresses

By chance, it became known that the Peruvian bishop Ciro Quispe Lopez from the city of Juli had 17 secret mistresses, and one of them was a nun. It was she who, out of jealousy, brought this story into the public field. This is not the only complaint against the bishop: it turned out that in addition to the sin of adultery, he was weak before the sin of greed. After an investigation by the Vatican, the would-be bishop resigned. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.

The lustful bishop from Peru: what is known

A loud scandal broke out in the Peruvian city of Huli. It became known about the resignation of 51-year-old Peruvian Bishop Ciro Quispe Lopez, who assumed his post seven years ago, in 2018.

It all started with accusations that the priest had 17 secret mistresses. After this information appeared, the Vatican became interested in the prelate, and it was decided to conduct its own investigation. It started back in 2024.

Paola Ugas, a journalist from Peru, told the Times in an interview that a nun had made this information public. She was also one of Ciro's mistresses and was jealous of his lawyer, another passion of the bishop. The nun sent information about her to the third mistress. During the case, it was revealed that the women almost got into a fight when they found out about the infidelities.

"It was a real soap opera, but it also revealed the facts of serious abuse of power. Many of the 17 women were too scared to admit it because they were afraid of him," Ugas said.

Information about all his mistresses was revealed after Ciro Quispe Lopez mistakenly sent photos and videos intended for one of his passions, a cleaner, mixing up phone numbers. It was she who complained to the Church. During the investigation, the Vatican examined voice recordings, photos and videos that the bishop sent to his women.

It was reported that despite the evidence and accusations, Quispe Lopez denied everything, calling it a slander carried out by "dark hands."

Chairs, museums and temples

In addition to the love affairs of the bishop-prelate, it became known about his other fraudulent schemes, including the theft of church funds. During the investigation by the Vatican, it became known that Ciro Quispe Lopez took the chairs, which are church property, and sent them for use in a chain of restaurants Patas Arriba (Spanish: "upside down"), specializing in chicken dishes. For this, he received financial benefits.

In addition, the Peru21 news agency reported that during the investigation, Quispe Lopez was accused of trying to seize control of museums and church sites that have historical value. However, this was denied by cultural leaders and local communities.

It was also reported that during his tenure as Bishop of Quispe, Lopez assisted in the restoration and rebuilding of colonial churches without permission from the Peruvian Ministry of Culture. In particular, this concerned the San Pedro (St. Peter's) temple in Puno (a city in southeastern Peru), which was declared a national monument in 1959. All these actions led to fines for damaging the architectural heritage of the region.

After information about all this appeared in the media, it was reported that parishioners even staged protests, demanding the resignation of Quispe Lopez and threatening to "take him out on donkeys" as a sign of disapproval.

After all this, the Vatican accepted the resignation of Quispe Lopez in September 2025, and the scandal itself drew attention to the abuse of power and secret affairs of the Church in Peru. The bishop's case may lead to new investigations and scandalous revelations.

Finally, the indigenous Aymara Indians complained to the Vatican about the bishop. They accused him of allegedly embezzling funds provided by the United Nations to implement aid programs for this people. The clergyman subsequently returned the money, which was a rather unexpected step. Presumably, the prelate was forced to return the funds by fear of threats from the Indians, who promised to crack down on him. And the Aymara people are known for not throwing words to the wind.

What is known about Ciro Quispe Lopez

Ciro Quispe Lopez was born on October 20, 1973 and completed his studies at St. Anthony Abbot Seminary, after which he studied at the Regina Apostolorum School (Accademia Regina Apostolorum) and at the Angelicum University (Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas; Angelicum). He holds a Licentiate and Doctorate in Biblical Theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. He has taught at various universities and seminaries.

On November 30, 2001, he was ordained a priest. On November 15, 2018, Pope Francis appointed Ciro prelate in Juli (Peru). The territorial prelature of the Roman Catholic Church and St. Peter's Cathedral are located in this city.