By Deborah Nnamdi
A 45-year-old pastor, identified only as Lucky, has been arrested by the Rivers State Police Command for allegedly sexually assaulting a 10-year-old girl in the Ihuaje community, located in Ahoada East Local Government Area of Rivers State.
The arrest was made by members of a local security group known as the ONELGA Security Planning and Advisory Committee (OSPAC), under the leadership of its Commander, Precious Ihuruzu.
Ihuruzu led his team to the community upon receiving information about the incident. The suspect, who also serves as the pastor of a local church branch, was apprehended and subsequently handed over to the Ahoada Police Division.
Dennis Otobo, a member of the Association Against Child Sexual and Gender-Based Violence, reported that he was contacted by the gender desk of the State Ministry of Health to follow up on the case, which he agreed to do.
“In the course of my investigation, I discovered that Pastor Lucky (surname withheld), who is also the proprietor of a private group of schools in the Ihuaje community, had been sexually abusing a 10-year-old girl under his care,” Otobo stated.
According to him, the abuse came to light when the girl’s parents visited her at the pastor’s house. “She told them what she had been going through, revealing that each time he abused her, he gave her N500 to keep quiet,” he said.
The parents immediately took the girl to the hospital for preliminary medical checks.
“At that point, I contacted the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) for assistance. The DPO told me to bring them in on Sunday and promised to handle the matter professionally. He kept his word because, as we speak, the pastor is in custody at the Ahoada Police Station,” Otobo added.
He commended the DPO of Ahoada Police Division, the Chief Security Officer of Ahoada East LGA, Hector Ekeakita, OSPAC, and human rights advocate Prince Wiro, the National Coordinator of the Centre for Basic Rights and Accountability Campaign, for their efforts in facilitating the arrest.
Otobo also called on the police to conduct a thorough investigation and, if the suspect is found guilty, ensure he is prosecuted by the law.
The Rivers State Police Command spokesperson, ASP Grace Iringe-Koko, “Yes, I can confirm his arrest. The pastor is in our custody here at the Command. We received a complaint from the girl’s parents, and our officers, in collaboration with a local vigilante group, apprehended him. The investigation is ongoing,” she said.
