-Members flee

By Praise Necherem

A fire-brand prayer minis-try in Nodu, Okpuno, Awka South local government area of Anambra state has been deserted by members following the arrest of the pastor by the police for allegedly defiling a 7-year-old girl.

The suspect, popularly called Bro. Solomon, operates a prayer ministry where hundreds of worshipers throng to seek for solutions to their spiritual problems.

Orient Daily gathered that the victim, a daughter to one of the members of the ministry, was brought to the church for prayers by her mother when she was sexually abused by the suspect.

Some residents of the area where the ministry is located told our correspondent that most members of the church came from different parts of the state for prayers every first Friday and Saturday of each month.

They alleged that the suspect had severally taken advantage of the young ladies and children who come for special prayers to have canal knowledge with them.

They called for full investigation into the matter to bring the culprit to book to serve as deterrent to other fake pastors.

One of the residents, Ezinne Opara, said she was shocked when the suspect was arrested by the police who took him to his prayer house where all kinds of charms and fetish objects were discovered.

“This man is not a pastor at all. A native doctor is even far better than him. See the kind of things discovered in a prayer house,” she said.

He called on the government to investigate the proliferation of socalled prayer ministries across the state to put a stop to such ugly incidents.
Another resident, who iden- tified himself as Edward, described the incident as sacrilegious, calling on human rights organisations to follow up the matter to ensure the victim got justice.

“Disvirgining a girl of that age is an abomination. The poor girl may not have rich parents that may be willing to pursue the case. So, the civil society organisations and law enforcement agencies should make sure justice is done to the case,” she stressed.

A member of the church, who did not want her name in print, said she was attracted to the ministry by the messages and outstanding miracles being performed by the suspect.

“I started attending the ministry because of the miracles and preaching of the pastor. I only come here on Fridays because I still attend my church on Sundays,” she said.

She said the church, which has another branch within the same area, was preparing for a special prayer summit on Friday before their pastor was arrested.

When our correspondent visited the church, it was a shadow of itself as the ministry which hitherto was a beehive of activities, was under lock and key with none of the members on sight.

Confirming the incident, the Commissioner of Police, Garba Umar said the victim had been taken to the hospital for proper medical attention, promising to carry out full investigation to ensure justice was done.

“A little girl who was taken to a pastor for spiritual healing was molested by the same pastor. The man had already been arrested. Anybody who engages in such dastardly act must be dealt with according to the law,” he assured.

He, however, advised parents to be careful of where they take their wards to in search of spiritual solution.

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Source
https://orientdailynews.com.ng/crime/suspected-paedophile-pastor-nabbed-defiling/