A man from the Morobe Province, who is known as a spiritual healer, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison today for sexually assaulting a 13-year-old in 2015.
The man, who is a pastor based in Morobe, will spend 8 years, four months, two weeks and 3 days at Bomana after the Waigani National Court deducted time spent in custody (1 year, 7 months) from the head sentence of 10 years.
The court also ordered for his repatriation to Morobe after the completion of his term.
Justice Panuel Mogish, in handing down his sentence, said pastors of churches hold sacred role in society where people place a high level of trust on them.
He said the man used his position as a pastor to defile the little girl when the parents trusted her to go into that room with him for prayer.
“In fact, today you should not be called a pastor, you have been disgraced from this position,” Justice Mogish told him in court today.
The 35-year-old man was brought to Port Moresby in 2015 by the family of the victim, where he lived with them at East Boroko.
On the night of 13 September 2015, he prayed with the children of the house for them to do better in school because he was returning to Lae.
After saying a prayer with the group, he took the 13-year-old girl into a room to pray with her individually after doing the same to her younger siblings. He was also drunk at that time.
While in the room, he turned off the lights. During the prayer, he removed his clothes and told the girl to also remove her clothes and move closer to him. She complied and he used his finger to sexually penetrate her.
The victim told her parents that same night. He pleaded guilty to the offence in court and was sentenced today.
He is married with two children.