A Family Court in Ondo State has made the decision to detain a pastor named Adetunji Obatayo in prison for reportedly sexually abusing his foster daughter and arranging for her to have abortions on three occasions.
Reports suggest that the victim had been living with the pastor since 2020 when her parents entrusted her to him.
Interestingly, Obatayo also serves as the principal of the school attended by the 14-year-old victim.
The 55-year-old pastor was apprehended by the state police after the victim disclosed the sexual misconduct to her parents.
Subsequently, he was charged with three counts of defilement and unlawfully providing drugs to induce abortions, thus leading to the loss of an unborn child.
These actions are said to be in violation of Sections 218, 230, and 328 of the Criminal Laws of Ondo State, 2006.
During the court session, the victim revealed that the pastor had been engaging in sexual activities with her since she started residing with him at the age of 10.
She narrated, “My parents entrusted me to live with the pastor for my education. On the first day at his house, he forced himself on me and warned me not to disclose it to anyone.
“He impregnated me three times, each time providing me with N5,000 to purchase contraceptive drugs for the termination. For the third pregnancy, when he refused to fund the abortion, I took his money to buy the pills.
“He later accused me of stealing his money for my boyfriend, resulting in the wrongful arrest of a boy from our school. This prompted me to inform my parents about the situation.”
In the ruling, the magistrate, B.A. Alphonso, ordered the pastor to be held in the Olokuta Correctional Center and instructed the case file to be forwarded to the Directorate of Public Prosecutions for guidance.
The magistrate also directed the victim to receive rehabilitation and scheduled the next hearing for August 29, 2024.