From Pulpit to Nsawam: Inside story of how Jesus One Touch was jailed over defilement

Ghanaian preacher Prophet Nana Kofi Yirenkyi, popularly known as Jesus One Touch, has recounted how he was arrested and imprisoned after being falsely accused of sexually abusing his daughter. The incident happened in 2010 when he was very popular and had a thriving church ministry called Jesus Blood Prophetic Ministry International Church, which was located at Oblogo Manchester at Weija. Sympathisers of "Jesus One Touch" wail and weep His fortunes, however, changed when he was accused of defiling his 10-year-old daughter, an allegation that eventually landed him in jail. According to him in an interview with Emelia Brobbey, the incident happened after his security guard sexually molested his daughter and confessed the act to him. He said, however, that he was rather accused of being the one who had abused his daughter and was detained by the police at the Mampong Police Station. “I was accused of sleeping with my daughter when it was actually my security guard who had sexually molested my daughter and had confessed to me,” he recounted. Jesus One Touch said it was his first time being detained in a police cell, and while there, he challenged God to prove his innocence. He was later transferred to the Women and Juvenile Unit (WAJU), where the case attracted widespread media attention. He said several allegations were made against him, including claims that he had sexual relations with his daughter and used the discharge for miracles in his church. “Despite my innocence, I was put in police cells in Mampong, and that was my first time ever being put in cells. While in the cells, I put a challenge to God to vindicate me if I was innocent,” he said. The preacher said the allegations also affected his relationships, as friends, fellow pastors and people he had supported distanced themselves from him. “Due to the issue, all my friends, pastors that I knew, and even those that I was providing for rejected me,” he stated. He said the case eventually went to court, where a prosecution witness alleged that he had been molesting his daughter three times a week. Jesus One Touch said he was subsequently sentenced to 10 years in prison. “The matter was taken to court, and during the proceedings, the prosecution witness was called in, and they claimed that I was molesting my daughter three times a week. I was sentenced to 10 years in prison,” he shared. He described his time in prison as difficult, saying he spent about a year in police cells before being transferred to Nsawam Prison, where he remained for another nine months. He said a dream he had while in prison later led him to use leaves he found within the prison grounds ahead of his court hearing. According to him, he added the leaves to his body cream and used it for three days before his case was heard. “One time, I had a dream where I was told to get some leaves, which I could find on the prison grounds. So I woke up immediately, went to look for the leaves, took some, added them to my body cream, and used it three days before my court hearing,” he added. Jesus One Touch said he was later acquitted and discharged, which he attributed to divine intervention. “I was told that the leaf helps people who have been wrongly accused. Truly, three days after using it ahead of my court case, I was finally acquitted and discharged. “I spent a year in cells alone before being taken to Nsawam, where I was acquitted and discharged after 9 months,” he concluded. The man of God was jailed by a Circuit Court, and the case attracted massive media attention due to the nature of the allegations. "Jesus One-Touch" Jailed For 10 Years He later appealed the conviction, and an Accra High Court judge acquitted and discharged him after ruling that the prosecution had failed to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt. According to reports, two medical examinations were conducted on the girl who was allegedly defiled, but the findings did not correlate. While one examination reportedly ruled out the possibility of defilement, the other suggested possible sexual abuse. MAG/VPO Inside Ghana’s Abandoned Engineering Powerhouse: What Went Wrong? Source: www.ghanaweb.com
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