A Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court residing in Ikeja has sentenced the founder of iReign Christian Ministry, Feyi Daniels, to a life term in jail for the rape of a church member.
The trial judge, Rahman Oshodi, declared the pastor guilty of sexually assaulting and raping a female worshipper on Friday.
The Lagos state authorities had earlier charged Daniels with rape, attempted rape, and sexual abuse on members of his church.
The pastor then faced a modified four-count charge pertaining to attempted rape, sexual assault, and rape.
Daniels was accused of sexually assaulting three members of his congregation both on the church property in Ikeja and at his Lekki home.
In May 2023, the pastor was remanded in court for allegedly raping a 25-year-old lady at his Lekki apartment.
The churchgoer had testified in court that the pastor had sex with her during a prayer session while speaking in tongues.
In his ruling, Oshodi found that the prosecution team was able to prove the first count accusation of rape against the pastor.
The court accepted the testimony and supporting documentation from the first survivor, a former church assistant pastor, who claimed that in 2020, Daniels had sexually assaulted her in his Lekki home.
The first survivor (name withheld) informed the court that following the sexual event, she had a vaginal infection, and the priest advised her to take medicine.
The trial judge included in his verdict screenshots of WhatsApp conversations in which the first victim told the priest that she had injuries in her vagina and the cleric advised her to take medicine.
The court rejected the second count of the rape charge because the prosecution was unable to provide sufficient evidence of the alleged incident.
The second witness told the court that she was sexually assaulted by the priest in his home during a “deliverance” session. She had travelled from Osogbo to Lagos for a religious function.
The judge also decided that the prosecution had not demonstrated the elements of attempted rape on the third count of the attempted rape indictment since the survivor had not been penetrated.
The third victim, who lived on the church grounds in 2021, said in court that the clergyman had squeezed and sucked both of her breasts.
The judge determined that the pastor was guilty of touching and sucking the third survivor’s breasts at his Ikeja church, according to the fourth count of sexual assault.
The trial judge then said that the pastor is a lair and gave conflicting testimony.
Oshodi said, “Your offences are grievous. You sexually assaulted two women, who were members of your church. You raped her ferociously.
“You committed these crimes using your dominant character as a pastor.”
Daniels was given a life sentence on the first count of rape and three years on the third count of sexual assault by the judge.
The clergyman was found not guilty by the judge on the second and fourth counts of attempted rape.
The judge then declared that Daniels’ name should be included in the Lagos State Sex Offenders Register.
Ozioma Samuel-Ugwuezi
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