Pastor accused of sexual harassment of a child abandons bail bid
· Citizen
A 58-year-old pastor and former investment banker has abandoned his bail application at the Roodepoort Magistrate’s Court.
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He faces allegations of raping a 12-year-old girl during the Easter weekend
He appeared in court on Wednesday morning but did not proceed with his bid for release.
The matter has been postponed to 20 May for further investigation.
‘Justice will be done for us’
A family representative, who cannot be identified to protect the child’s identity, said the family welcomed the development but remained deeply distressed.
“We’re much happy about whatever that he has abandoned the bail application, because he can see that he is at wrong for doing whatever he has done. So we’re quite happy about it.
“As we heard, he was a priest, but now we really don’t know whether, what has came into his mind for him to do such things that he had done,” the representative said.
They added the family would now wait for the next court date.
However, the emotional toll of the alleged incident continues to weigh heavily on the family.
“We are still very sad about it because of it is very, very, very disturbing for the family. So we feel and think that justice will be done for us.”
Child receiving support
The representative declined to comment in detail about the condition of the child due to the sensitivity of the case.
“We cannot speak with the media about our child. The only thing is that our child is getting help from some stakeholders,” they said.
They stressed that the family’s priority is justice.
“What we want to see happening is that justice take its course, so that they must make sure that the justice will be done for our girl child.”
Background to the case
The pastor faces allegations of raping the child during the Easter weekend.
According to the South African Police Service (Saps), the alleged incident occurred between 8pm on 3 April and 2am on 4 April at a residence in Dobsonville.
The victim had gone to the premises with her aunt and a 10-year-old friend to cook, as their home had no electricity.
“It is further alleged that the suspect later arrived at the residence allegedly intoxicated,” police said.
The situation reportedly escalated when the suspect allegedly gave the child a drink that caused her to become dizzy.
Authorities allege the girl was then taken to a vehicle parked outside the yard, where she was sexually harassed.
The victim later regained consciousness inside the suspect’s office.
“She was found in a distressed condition by witnesses,” Saps said.
A medical examination conducted after the incident “yielded positive findings consistent with injuries”.
Investigators collected multiple pieces of forensic evidence at the scene, including the victim’s clothing, which was recovered from a vehicle.
Other items collected included “vomit containing a red substance, as well as wine stains found on the office floor”.
Police also seized closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage from the premises for further analysis.
The suspect remains in custody.