A Kilifi pastor has been sentenced to 30 years in prison after being convicted of defiling his 15-year-old cousin on two occasions between June 2023 and February 2024.
Chief Magistrate James Mwaniki found the prosecution had proved the case beyond reasonable doubt and convicted the pastor of defilement under Section 8(1) as read with Section 8(3) of the Sexual Offences Act, 2006.
The complainant, who was 15 when the offences occurred and 16 when she testified in June 2024, told the court that the accused was her cousin and a pastor at the church where she worshipped.
She said the pastor initially invited her to his home to take part in fasting and prayers with him and his wife, allegedly for spiritual cleansing. She accepted the invitation without suspecting that she would be harmed.
At one point, the girl asked to return home to have her hair plaited but the pastor insisted that she remain at his house and have it done there. She was served supper and later slept in a room with the pastor’s two children.
The court heard that she was later awakened when the pastor and his wife entered the room. According to her testimony, the pastor’s wife allegedly covered her mouth to prevent her from screaming while the pastor sexually assaulted her.
The pastor allegedly threatened to kill her if she told anyone about the incident. She returned home the following morning but, despite being distressed by what had happened, did not immediately tell her mother.
About two weeks later, the pastor allegedly sought her out again and invited her for another period of fasting and prayer. He reportedly claimed that the prayers were necessary to prevent her from eventually marrying a non-Christian after completing school, following what he described as a divine vision.
The complainant said they fasted and prayed at the church before the pastor invited her and another girl to his home for evening tea. The other girl was subsequently sent home, leaving the complainant behind to wait for special night prayers. The pastor later allegedly sexually assaulted her again while she was asleep in a room with his children.
Several months later, the girl discovered she was pregnant. Her mother reported the matter to police, after which the minor was taken to hospital and the pregnancy was confirmed.
A government analyst subsequently presented DNA evidence in court. The analysis showed a 99.9 per cent probability that the pastor was the biological father of the complainant’s newborn child.
During his defence, the accused initially denied committing the offence before admitting that he had sexual intercourse with the minor. He claimed, however, that he had been coerced and did not know that she was underage.
Mwaniki rejected the defence, finding it baseless and an afterthought. The magistrate also found that the accused had acted without lawful justification and upheld the principal charge of defilement.
“I find merits in the prosecution’s case on the principal charge of defilement. The accused person is hereby sentenced to serve 30 years imprisonment,” Mwaniki ruled.
The prosecution was led by Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions Winnie Atieno Otieno. Mwaniki directed the convict to exercise his right of appeal against both the conviction and sentence within 14 days.
