Pastor Arrested for Defilement

The Monitor (Kampala)
NEWS5 August 2007
Posted to the web 6 August 2007 Kampala

POLICE have arrested a pastor for allegedly defiling a 16-year-old girl in Rukungiri District. Pastor Grace Okello preaches at Revival Mission Church in Rukungiri Town Council. Rukungiri CID Officer Henry Mbabazi said the case had been registered at the police. "We arrested him and investigations are still going on," he said.

It is alleged that on Friday, Pastor Okello took the girl (name withheld) to his office on Karegesa Road where he defiled her. The girl said at the police station that Pastor Okello had forcibly pulled her into his office and in the ensuing scuffle she hit him on the head with an unknown object. Sunday Monitor saw a fresh wound on Mr Okello's face at the police station.

The neighbours to the Pastor's office said they heard the girl screaming for help as the pastor shouted, "Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ". They thought he was possibly praying for the girl.

A neighbour only identified as Irene, said that after the scuffle, the girl came out of the pastor's office holding torn underwear, which she went with to Rukungiri Police Station.
Pastor Okello followed the girl to the police station from where he was arrested. Mr Mbabazi declined to comment on the case, saying he would need to examine the file before making any statement on the matter.

Security sources said that police have been investigating Pastor Okello for arson which he allegedly committed in Rwenkuba Cell in the town council in February this year.
It is alleged that when Pastor Okello failed to win over Mr Peter Wako to his Revival Church, he burnt his Bahai religious books worth Shs20 million. Pastor Okello is a popular gospel preacher on Radio Rukungiri on Sundays. One of his co-pastors, Mr Emmanuel Guma, said that Pastor Okello's arrest was plotted to destroy his gospel ministry.

Knowledgeable sources said that Pastor Okello, who has lived in Rukungiri for about 20 years, recently entered into partnership with Compassion International and has been getting donor support to help more than 200 orphans under his ministry.

Defilement is a capital offence and a guilty person is liable to a maximum death sentence. That punishment, however, has never been handed down. Recent police and human rights research findings show that defilement is top on the national crime list.

Several pastors of the Pentecostal born-again churches have of late been reported in the press on various accusations of extortion, sexual enslavement, defilement, sodomy and outright fraud against their faithful.
Several pastors are now under police investigations for the alleged crimes.