An FCT High Court Maitama, on Tuesday, sentenced a clergyman Pastor Basil Princewill, founder Mountain Mover Ministry International Nyanya, to seven years in prison for rape.
Princewill was charged with four counts bordering on rape, impersonation and attempt to cause abortion and abetting miscarriage.
Delivering judgment, Justice Hussein Baba-Yusuf said,” l must consider the faith of a young girl and the society.
“It is even worrisome when the person involved is a man of God who we should look up to as next to God, those who serve in the Lord’s vineyard are expected to be an example to the society.
“We have a duty to send a signal that this attitude should not be tolerated, it is regrettable that the person who called himself a man of God will be involved in such shameful disgraceful and satanic act,” he said.
The judge said that by this conduct, he deserved to be kept away from the public.
He would face the prison walls like a monastery so that when he comes out, he would have been born again.
He said to consider the fact that he was a first offender “accordingly the accused person is sentenced to seven years for the offence of rape and five years for the offence of abetment which will run concurrently.”
Baba-Yusuf held that out of the four counts, the defendant is convicted on count one, which is rape and count three which is abetment to cause abortion.
He said that the testimony of the three prosecution witnesses has collaborated, PW1, was the mother of the victim, PW2, the victim herself and PW3, the doctor where the victim was taken to.
“I believe the evidence of the PW2 (victim ) to be true and the PW1 (her mother ) told the story in the same way the victim told the court too.
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