Pastor remanded for defiling eight girls

Accra, May 22, GNA - An Accra Regional Tribunal on Tuesday remanded a Head Pastor accused of defiling eight teenage girls within seven months.

The Pastor, James Nana Akwasi Agyemang who is also a herbalist, between May and December, 2006 at Dome in Accra, allegedly had sex with the girls between ages three and 12, in his bedroom and bathroom.

The accused pleaded not guilty to eight counts of defilement of a female under 16 years, contrary to Section 101(2) of Act 29/60, as amended by Section 11 of Act 554/98.

Prosecuting, Mrs Evelyn D Keelson, told the tribunal chaired by Mr Justice Frank Manu that Agyemang lives at Dome in Accra, while the two complainants are pastors in Agyemang's church.

Mrs Keelson said the Head Pastor had the church's Headquarters in Accra, with a branch in Cote d'Ivoire and that he used herbs to help him cure ailments. He had also established a school on the basis of a non-governmental organization (NGO), where he offered scholarships to brilliant but needy children.

She said as a result of the church's mission to assist members, residents in the community and his foreign branch, he managed to bring children from the Abidjan branch to Ghana in order for him to fulfil his obectives of offering scholarships to them.

According to the prosecutor, the complainants whose children were among those under the care of the Head Pastor, had their children falling victim of the accused person's wicked intentions to defile them.

Mrs Keelson said one of the church members from Abidjan visited her younger sister at the Headquarters. The sister disclosed to her that the accused had had sex with her in his bathroom, adding that the mother came to Ghana to lodge a complaint to the police when she got the information.

Opposing a bail application by Agyemang's counsel, the prosecutor told the tribunal that defilement was one of the cases that bail should not be granted.

Putting up a brief defence, Agyemang's counsel stated that the two complainants concocted the story against his client. Counsel described the situation as unfortunate. He said: "Some of the said victims came with their grandmothers to my office and told me that the story was framed up".