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The Bayelsa State Police Command has arrested a pastor and his wife in connection with the alleged rape of a 13-year-old girl in Yenagoa, the state capital.
The pastor’s wife was taken into custody for allegedly paying N120,000 for an illegal abortion for the victim, who is reported to be her cousin.
The arrests occurred during a Sunday service, causing confusion among the congregation. The pastor initially attempted to flee through a back door but later surrendered to the police after his wife’s apprehension on church premises.
According to eyewitness accounts, the pastor is accused of abusing the minor on multiple occasions—both at the church and at his home—before she became pregnant.
Members of the Women Against Gender-Based Violence and the Do Foundation confirmed that an initial interview with the victim revealed that the abuse took place five times beginning in November 2022. The advocacy group stated that the pastor allegedly exploited the girl during her visits to the church to deliver a local bread known as Madiga to his wife.
It was reported that when the victim’s mother confronted the pastor and his wife, she was persuaded by her sister not to act against the church. Consequently, she was allegedly given N120,000 to facilitate the abortion, which took place after a medical scan.
Tensions escalated during a church service when the pastor and his wife were heard on the altar thanking God for defeating adversaries against them and the church. Distressed by their celebration, the victim’s mother proceeded to the Ekeki Police Division to report the alleged rape and also reached out to the complaint unit of the National Association of Women Against Gender-Based Violence, led by Barr. Dise Ogbise Goddy Harry.
The State Commissioner of Police, Iyamah Daniel Edebor, confirmed the arrests and stated that the Ekeki Division has been directed to transfer the case to the Gender Unit at the Police Headquarters for a thorough investigation and prosecution.
