An Ado-Ekiti High Court has sentenced a pastor of the Winners Chapel Church in Omuo-Ekiti, Enoch Gbinyiam, to life imprisonment for raping a minor within his church premises.
The State Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Julius Ajiba, disclosed to the court that Gbinyiam committed the crime against the daughter of a church member who frequently visited the vicarage to assist with household chores and tutor the pastor’s children.
According to Ajiba, the victim was offered a sedated bottle of Fanta during one of her visits, after consuming, she lost consciousness and later awoke to find herself bleeding profusely from her vagina.
The heinous act led to the pastor’s immediate arrest and subsequent trial.
The DPP successfully prosecuted the case by calling four witnesses and presenting two exhibits, while Gbinyiam, represented by his counsel, Mr Adeyinka Opaleke, maintained his innocence and presented one witness in his defence.
Presiding Judge, Hon. Justice O.I.O Ogunyemi, found that the prosecution had convincingly proven the case beyond a reasonable doubt, leading to Gbinyiam’s conviction.
The judge ruled that Gbinyiam’s actions breached Section 2 of the Gender-Based Violence (Prohibition) Law, 2019, warranting a life sentence at a Correctional Centre.
