Several things to note here.

There is no evidence that Stephen Hawking participated in any child abuse.

Yes—Stephen Hawking visited Jeffrey Epstein’s island in 2006 and was photographed there [2] [3], but there is no substantiated, court-filed evidence in the released documents proving he participated in an underage sexual orgy or committed sexual crimes; references to such a claim appear as an allegation Epstein sought to rebut in a 2015 email, not as proof or a charge against Hawking [7] [4] [8].

https://factually.co/fact-checks/science/did-stephen-hawking-visit-jeffrey-epstein-island-e24a6e

If he did participate, it was despite his scientific inclinations, not because of them. We have endless evidence that sexually abusing children causes short- and long-term harm. A study by Rind et al tried to claim that the harm caused by childhood sexual abuse is overstated, but the study was ripped apart by other scientists. It is not considered to be scientifically valid because it failed empirical verification.

If Hawking abused children, he had no one to blame but himself. Conversely, when religious people do it, they may claim that satan tempted them to sin, or that god is actually fine with child abuse (which is supported by multiple bible verses). The bible also fails empirical verification, obviously, but religious people are more interested in claims that comfort them regardless of veracity. Hawking did not believe in divine forgiveness or an afterlife. Religious abusers may think that prayer and repentance is sufficient to put them back on track to go to heaven, regardless of how much the victim was harmed or whether the offender harms more victims in the future.

Many catholic abusers are actively, intentionally protected instead of reported:

Dioceses across the United States and beyond faced accusations of mishandling cases of abuse, often prioritizing institutional reputation over victim safety. Instead of reporting allegations to law enforcement, some bishops reassigned accused priests to new parishes, where they sometimes continued to abuse. These transfers were often undocumented or vaguely recorded to avoid scrutiny.

https://www.catholicshare.com/what-are-the-little-known-diocese-cover-ups-involving-local-cases-of-transfers-and-hush-deals-and-how-did-reporters-uncover-them/

Can self-professed scientists do wrong? Yes. But I would argue they are not applying science in those instances, and we can determine the difference by examining empirical evidence.