Nigeria Pastors Held for Sex Crimes

The Edo State Police Command have arrested two pastors accused of sodomising a 15-year-old boy and a 20-year-old male.




Twenty-four hours after the House of Representatives lent its voice to criminalise homosexuality and same-sex marriage in Nigeria, the police in Edo State Wednesday paraded 26 suspected criminals among whom was a pastor identified as Philips Ogbebor who was alleged to have had carnal knowledge of a 20-year-old male member of his church (name withheld). The pastor was alleged to have had intercourse with the victim and told him he would die if he ever disclosed what happened.

When confronted with the allegation, the pastor simply said: "God will judge, go and talk to others" and kept on mumbling. But opening up on his experience, his victim said: "I told him I had never done this since I grew up, but he did it and it hurt me... Then I said I would not allow it again, so after the second attempt, I threatened to tell other people. But he made me take an oath and threatened that if I ever told anyone, I would die.

"He (pastor) then took sand and olive oil, poured it on my head; then he wore a black garment and informed me that I would die. He then killed a black fowl and gave me the liver and gizzard at around 2.00am to eat, threatening that if I ever told anyone, I would die like the fowl had died.

"But when I realised that it was a sin, I met a man of God and asked that he should pray for me and asked for God's forgiveness and told him that I was ready to expose the pastor, since he had forced me. So I went to the church to expose the pastor. When he heard it, he threatened me, sending his younger brother and members of his gang after me and since then I have been running."

Also paraded by the state Police Commissioner, Folusho Adebanjo, were two suspected cultists believed to have participated in the recent rival cult clash in the state and seven suspected pipeline vandals and operators of illegal refineries.

On the police parade row were two suspected armed robbers, from whom a Toyota Camry car that was stolen at gunpoint in Kaduna State was recovered. A suspect who was alleged to have demanded a N20 million ransom from one Joseph with death threats, and three others, who the police boss said were in possession of firearms without licences, were also paraded.

In addition, two suspects were held for allegedly raping a 20-year-old lady in the bush; just as five other persons including a middle-aged woman, all from Ojah, Akoko-Edo Local Government Council, were accused of burning to death one Funmi Abiodun on the suspicion that she was a witch who caused the death of a relation, were also paraded.

Speaking on the suspects, the Edo police boss said: "The war against criminality is relentlessly being waged against men of the underworld; the command is not leaving any stone unturned as regards crime and criminality in Edo State."