According to reports, the girl was living with the accused on the instructions of her mother who is a member of the church.
The victim out of panic and fear reported the incident to her uncle, who called the attention of a human right organization, 'the Esther Child Rights', in Ikotun.
The uncle, a dry cleaner said, “I was in my shop on May 7, 2021, when I saw my niece crying. A motorcyclist, who is well known to me, brought her to my shop and the man told me that when she asked him to take her to a pharmacy, he conveyed her to my shop to prevent her from indulging in self-medication.
“When I asked my niece what happened, she said the prophet had been sexually abusing her and threatened her not to tell anyone. I observed that she had been severely beaten as she was crying profusely. She also reported the case to my elder brother and sister.”
According to reports, the girl disclosed that it was her mother that forced her to live with the pastor,
She said, “I met the prophet on June 1, 2020, he had a brief conversation with my mother and I didn’t know what it was about. Three days after, the prophet asked if I’d like to live with him. My mother pleaded with me to live with him and I accepted.
“After living with him for two weeks, he woke me up in the middle of the night and began to plead with me to allow him to have sex with me, but I refused. Suddenly, he forced himself on me and sexually abused me and that was how it started. The prophet told me that I would run mad if I ever tell anyone; so, I was scared to tell my mum about it.
“But I told Ugo, the son of my mum’s friend; I also told my mum’s sister and her fiancé, who is the assistant pastor of the church, and they believed me. When the prophet found out, he denied it.
The victim’s mother, while reacting to the situation said she asked the girl to go to the prophet because she was too troublesome.
"The prophet helps me to caution her from being wayward. On Friday, I called the prophet, because my daughter returned late from school, without her school bag.
“So, I took her to the prophet’s house, where he questioned her. The pastor used a horsewhip to threaten her, but she didn’t say anything. I got angry and poured pepper into her eyes.
“I later paid a motorcyclist to take her back to the shop, but my daughter changed the direction and told the man to take her to a pharmacy. My daughter is a wayward girl and a liar. She is framing the pastor.”
However, the State Police Command has affirmed that investigations are ongoing.
