Pastor Piller Erekwa, from Glorious Covenant Church, has entered a guilty plea to a sexual abuse charge presented against him by a Magistrate Court in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
The State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID) of the Rivers State Police Command brought the charges against Erekwa in court.
During the proceedings, the clergyman admitted his guilt to Chief Magistrate Ogeh Elkanah, who presided over the case. The charge against Erekwa stated that he sexually abused a 15-year-old girl in Mgbuola village, located in the Rundele community of Emohua Local Government Area in the state. The court determined that the offense took place between December 2022 and January 2023 and is punishable under the Rivers State Child Act.
Chief Magistrate Elkanah, attached to the Rivers State family court, after considering the charge and the defendant’s plea, ordered that Erekwa be held in the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre. The case was adjourned until July 19, 2023, for the presentation of facts and sentencing.
According to reports, Pastor Erekwa was apprehended last week by detectives from the Rumuji Police Division in Emohua LGA and subsequently transferred to the SCIID for further investigation.
Meanwhile, Prince Wiro, the national coordinator of the Centre for Basic Rights Protection and Accountability Campaign, who has been involved in the matter, praised the Police for arraigning the suspect in court. Wiro also commended the victim’s family for resisting alleged pressure to settle the case outside of court.
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