Peculiar Ginika, the General Overseer and lead pastor of Liberation Word Assembly International in Aba, Abia State, has been arrested by the police for the alleged defilement of a minor.
Ginika has been detained at the command headquarters of the Rapid Response Squad of the Nigeria Police, where he is being questioned.
He was arrested last weekend, The Nation reports.
The father of the victim had reported to RRS personnel that his daughter was sexually assaulted by the cleric, who was also described as their family pastor.
A police source told the Nation that a nurse who reportedly helped the suspect with contraceptive pills and took the blood sample of the victim could also be arrested for questioning.
Family sources said that the victim who turned 17 in November 2023 revealed that the cleric started abusing her when she was 15.
The cleric, who is divorced, reportedly took advantage of the desire of the teenager to know God more.
He was also credited for healing her of the asthma that had been troubling her since she was eight.
One of the sources said: “My sister said that the man forced himself on her and led her to an oath never to reveal what was going on between both of them or she risks her asthma affliction coming back, this time more severe.
“He manipulated my sister such that she hated her parents and even her relations. He even went ahead trying to force my sister to marry him.
“Through his manipulation and fear of losing my sister, he made my sister who had wanted to study medicine not to agree writing her Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) exam as she instead opted for a catering school."
Lamenting the unfortunate development, the source added, "How can such a brilliant girl would just refuse to pursue her education to choose to go to catering school. We knew that something was wrong, but we never suspected the pastor.
“Each day that they have sex, he uses her up to five times and he gives her contraceptives at the end of the rounds of sex. My sister will wear out and will hardly do house chores and we never knew that a man who visits our house was behind all these."
“The matter is with the RRS team in Aba North local government area headquarters, Aba,” the police source was quoted as saying.
Confirming the arrest of the pastor, the command's spokesperson, Maureen Chinaka, said, "He is still being interrogated by the police."