A London court has sentenced a Nigerian pastor, based in the United Kingdom, to three years and four months in jail for sexual offences.
The pastor, Benjamin Egbujor, 55, was sentenced by the Inner London Crown Court for sexually abusing a 15-year-old girl (names withheld).
Besides, Egbujor was culpable of assaulting several other women under his watch as a pastor. He sexually abused them during private prayer sessions.
The offences took place at the Jubilee Christian Centre in Penarth Street, Peckham, where Egbujor was the Archbishop-elect.
The court found Egbujor guilty of sexual assault, of grooming and inciting an underage to engage in sexual activities.
Egbujor was sentenced with an accomplice, simply identified as Nwenwu, both of who violated the victim.
“Pastor Egbujor told me I had been chosen to attend an individual prayer session. After being taken into his private office, he forced me to undress and oil was poured over me,” the teenager said.
In his prosecution, police Constable James Bell of the Met’s Offences and Child Abuse said, “Egbujor and Nwenwu preyed on their victim’s vulnerabilities, whilst satisfying their own sexual urges under the guise of private prayer.”
Also speaking, Detective Inspector Angela Craggs of the Met’s Sexual Offences and Child Abuse Command said, “Egbujor and Nwenwu exploited the trust of their congregation, when they targeted and abused these victims. They believed their position within the church would protect them from facing justice, but the court has held them accountable for their actions.
“I hope this conviction serves to empower victims of sexual violence to come forward and report to police, and as a warning to offenders, who think they can use their position to protect them from the law.”
