Fifty-year-old pastor from Kuresoi South charged in court for marrying a 16-year-old girl
A pastor in Kuresoi South, Nakuru has been arrested for allegedly marrying a 16 year old girl.
A 50-year-old pastor in Kuresoi South is facing charges of kidnapping and abduction after he was arrested for allegedly marrying a 16-year-old girl.
Confirming the incident, Kuresoi South OCPD Jerimiah Leariwala said the pastor is currently in police custody and will be arraigned at the Molo Magistrate's Court to answer to the charges.
According to Mr Leariwala, four similar cases of older men marrying young girls have been reported so far, causing alarm among locals.
"Two weeks ago, the parents of the 16-year-old girl came to report that they had been informed by the school administration that their child was missing from school, and that is when we took action," Mr Leariwala said.
The OCPD reveals that it was through the intervention of the pastor's neighbours, who had seen him and the young girl together for some time, that led to his arrest.
Police later used his mobile phone to trace the girl through messages and calls from the 'unknown number' in his phone.
"Apparently, the pastor had bought a phone for the young girl to which he would send money whenever she asked for it, and he had also rented her a house in Nakuru town," said Mr Leariwala.
Police also suspect that the pastor may have lured the girl when she returned to school.
"After the pastor was arrested, he was taken to Molo Magistrate's Court on a charge of kidnapping and abduction, a charge of defilement is yet to be added because at the moment we do not know the extent of the relationship or what went on while the two were in the house together," he said.
Mr Leariwala says they will work tirelessly to ensure that such cases are brought to an end.