Rape: Pastor in court to face charges of rape and sexual grooming

A 60-year-old pastor appeared briefly in the Qumbu Magistrates Court to face several charges of rape and sexual grooming on Wednesday after he allegedly sexually assaulted children who were among his congregants.

The pastor, from Natala village in Ngcolokini area of Qumbu district is facing four courts of rape and three counts of sexual grooming. 

National Prosecuting Authority Eastern Cape spokesperson for the Mthatha Division, Luxolo Tyali, said that the state had alleged that the pastor had preyed on four girls, who were aged between 13 and 17 at the time of the rape. The girls were members of his local church. Three of the rape victims grew up in the pastor’s family home because his wife is their maternal aunt.

“The offences are alleged to have taken place between 2010 and 2018 but they were only reported in January 2020 after the complainants had moved to stay elsewhere,” Tyali said.

“Previous attempts by the complainants to report the matter before were allegedly frustrated by relatives and congregants. It is alleged that they were discouraged from exposing themselves to ‘ungodly’ things like watching television and socialising with people who do not attend the same church as them,” Tyali said.

During his brief court appearance to apply for bail on Wednesday the pastor indicated that he would secure the services of a private attorney to defend him against the rape case.

“The prosecution did not oppose bail and the court granted him R5 000 bail with strict conditions,” Tyali said.

The conditions imposed on the pastor include that he may not contact the complainants, either directly or indirectly. The court also ruled that he must not mention the four rape victim’s names when conducting sermons at his local church.

“The case against the pastor was postponed to 06 October for legal representation,” Tyali said.