Mr Ashton appeared on radio on Thursday morning responding to explosive allegations aired on ABC 7.30, as well as subsequent claims by Cardinal Pell of a "conspiracy" to pervert the course of justice.

In the interview with radio station 3AW, Mr Ashton confirmed Cardinal Pell was the subject of an investigation by the Sano Taskforce that involved multiple allegations over a long period of time.

On Wednesday night, 7.30 aired detailed allegations made by former students of St Alipius primary school in Ballarat, who alleged Cardinal Pell would play with them in the swimming pool and molest them by touching their genitals under water.

Mr Ashton said charges against the Cardinal were still a possibility and that detectives were waiting on an opinion from the Office of Public Prosecution on whether the inquiry should continue.

"It's been a long investigation ... there are a lot of leads that have to be followed up," he said.

Cardinal Pell is yet to be questioned by police over the allegations, however Mr Ashton said a decision had yet to be made on whether to send detectives to Rome.

"If it's required I'm more than happy to try and make that happen," he said.

"Normally we would interview someone towards the end of an inquiry."

Cardinal Pell has rejected the allegations, claiming that Victoria Police leaked the information to the ABC and compromised the judicial process.

He also demanded an investigation into the matter.

However, Mr Ashton said he didn't believe there was a leak in the force. He said that it was clear that the sources for the 7.30 story were the alleged victims, not Victoria Police.

"You can see the emotion in their voices and see it in them last night. They're highly traumatised by what they say has happened to them," he said.

Mr Ashton said any request for an inquiry from Cardinal Pell would be referred to IBAC.

An earlier demand by Cardinal Pell for an inquiry into police leaking was dismissed by the corruption watchdog, Mr Ashton said.

"It won't be the police investigating the police on this, it will be looked at independently," he said.

The ABC obtained eight police statements from complainants, witnesses and family members who are reportedly helping the taskforce with its investigation.

One complainant, Darren Mooney, spoke publicly: "He'd throw us off his shoulders ... he would grab you from – have his hands on your backside and then he'd push you off," Mr Mooney said.

Another alleged victim, Lyndon Monument, described the abuse as: "his hand touching your genitals and stuff on the outside of your bathers or shorts. And then that slowly became hand down the front of the pants or your bathers or whatever you call them."

"[He would] grab you ... around the testes, around the anus ... very forceful around the anus," a third complainant,  Damian Dignan, told the program.

All three men were pupils at St Alipius.

Other allegations aired on the program included:

• that Cardinal Pell would touch the genitals of children while swimming in a public pool in Ballarat in the late '70s.
• that he was naked in the change rooms on a regular basis in front of children.
• that he exposed himself to three young children in another change room, at the Torquay Surf Club in 1986 or 1987.  

Cardinal Pell's office issued a furious statement and said he rejected all the allegations aired by the program.

"The ABC has no licence to destroy the reputation of innocent people and Cardinal Pell, like all those who have allegations against them that have not been tested by the Courts, is entitled to the presumption of innocence – not immediate condemnation," the statement said.

But his anger was not just reserved for the media.

"It seems there has been leaking of information and allegations by elements of the Victorian Police to the ABC," the statement said.

"This is consistent with previous patterns of improper and illegal disclosure of information from such sources to a variety of media outlets. Such information has in the past repeatedly been demonstrated to be inaccurate and unfounded.

"In a context where police themselves have suggested, accurately or otherwise, that the making of charges is under review by relevant authorities, these disclosures and consequent publicity by the ABC clearly are apt and calculated deliberately to influence and compromise relevant judicial and prosecutorial processes.

"The Cardinal calls for an investigation to assess whether any actions of elements of the Victoria Police and the ABC program amount to a conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

"The Cardinal has co-operated in the past and will continue to co-operate through the proper and appropriate civil authorities.

"I bear no ill will and have no desire to cause them harm but what they say about me is not true.

"I have done nothing wrong."

In response to Cardinal Pell's comments, an ABC spokesperson said Victoria Police was not the source of the story broadcast on 7.30.

"The report was the result of our own on-the-ground journalism over the course of months, which included finding people who would be willing to talk to us on camera," the spokesperson said.

"There is a clear public interest case for reporting on this matter.

"Cardinal George Pell is a significant public figure, a senior figure in the Catholic Church, and he also has had direct responsibility for the Church's response on the issue of child sex abuse."

Archbishop of Melbourne Denis Hart said Cardinal Pell deserved to go through the "usual lawful processes without being compromised or sensationalised by the media".

"I have known Cardinal Pell as a seminarian, priest, bishop and friend for more than 55 years," Archbishop Hart said in a statement.

"The allegations made on the ABC ... do not reflect the man I know or the behaviour which I have observed over the years I have known him."

With Emily Woods