A self-styled pastor believed to be in his 30s, has been accused of raping a 16-year-old girl.

Pastor Elijah Collins Larbi, founder and general overseer of the Gilgal Covenant Prayer Ministry at Nsuoase, Kade, in the Eastern Region, had allegedly called the teenager to sweep his single room apartment for him at about 10:30 am on April 10, 2014, when no one was at home.

While she had bent down to sweep, Elijah purportedly gazed at her curiously and so she got frightened and decided to stop sweeping but he reportedly pounced on her and pushed her to the bed.

After some minutes of struggle, pastor Elijah managed to weaken the victim by allegedly punching her shoulders.

According to the victim, she was unable to lift her arms thereafter.

Elijah is then said to have opened her thighs and squatted on her, rendering her helpless.

He then removed her panty and allegedly inserted his manhood into her, breaking her hymen and left her bleeding profusely after which he reportedly sent her out sobbing helplessly.

When the victim reported the incident to her mother, who is married to an associate pastor to the accused, she allegedly charged the victim not to tell anyone because of the stigma associated with rape.

The victim, who would turn 18 on September 20, and a form two student of Kade Senior High school, is bent on seeking justice because she said she intended to marry as a virgin, but Pastor Elijah had deprived her of that dignity.

In an interview, she said she always became angry whenever she saw the pastor and clashed with him over the matter until it became public.

According to her, she reported the matter to her father who lodged a complaint with the Kade police.

The pastor was first arrested on August 8, 2014 and arraigned before a Kade magistrate court for rape on August 21, 2014. He was remanded into police custody by Abdul Majid Iliasu, the magistrate.

Elijah Collins Larbi was bailed on his next appearance on August 26, 2014 and the case was never called until Thursday, April 16, 2015, but had to be adjoined to Friday, April 17, 2015 for want of prosecution.

The victim’s father, Tiku King, is therefore pleading with the Attorney General (AG) and the Chief Justice (CJ) to intervene in the matter and ensure that the pastor is brought to book.

When contacted, Pastor Elijah Collins Larbi confirmed he knew the young girl through her mother.

When asked if there was an incident in their house on April 10, 2014, he said he would not be able to comment since the case was in court, stressing that he did not want to be cited for contempt.

He added that he could only talk after the advice by the AG had come out.