Youth pastor in court on child porn charges

File picture: Independent Media

File picture: Independent Media

Published Oct 18, 2017

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Cape Town - At least five complainants have come forward in the case against a pastor in court for child pornography and the NPA expects more to be added at a later stage. 

The 26-year-old youth pastor from a church in Rondebosch made a brief appearance in the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court facing child pornography charges. 

The pastor cannot be named yet as he has not pleaded, but was arrested last month.

He allegedly befriended boys between the ages of 14 and 17 through social media and allegedly exchanged naked photos with them. 

Spokesperson for the NPA Eric Ntabazalila said: “There are currently four or five complainants but more are likely to be added at a later stage.”

The youth pastor also faces a charge of failing to report knowledge of the commission of a sexual offence with children. He was being investigated jointly by the US Department of Homeland Security and local police. 

Also read: Pastor arrested for child pornography

Various electronic equipment including cell phones, laptops and memory cards were seized during his arrest.

Women & Men Against Child Abuse expressed outrage over the charges and Advocacy Manager Joanne Barrett said in a statement said he was arrested after a parent came forward. 

“The suspect befriended victims through their social media accounts and exchanged naked photos with some of the boys in his church under the pretext that he was a girl. When the boys, aged between 14 and 17, decided to stop, he would then threaten them with online exposure of their pictures.”

She added that most of the boys would then go to him, as the youth pastor, to seek advice on how to handle the person bullying them online. He would then advise them to keep doing what that individual wanted which constitutes, on his part, failing to report knowledge of the commission of a sexual offence with children.

“We desperately need cases of this nature to be prioritised by our justice system, and a strong message should be sent out to potential perpetrators by denying bail in such cases, and we hope to one day see a mandatory life sentence for child abusers. Lock them up and throw away the keys.”

He is currently out on R1 000 bail and the case has been postponed to December 13 for further investigation. 

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Cape Argus

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