16 boys accuse church leader of sodomy

By Robert Wanyonyi

Bungoma County

Police are looking for a church leader suspected to have sodomised 16 boys at an estate in Bungoma town.

The man, who is in his 30s, is alleged to have committed the offence at different dates since the beginning of the year.

He has since gone underground after the victims recorded statements about the bizarre activities to the police yesterday.

The revelations sparked anger as irate parents stormed the Bungoma Police Station to demand for the immediate arrest of the man.

The man is said to have been a houseboy before becoming a businessman and later a priest at a local church.

"He used to lure me into a cattle-dip near our home and every time he did bad things on me. He gave me Sh1,000 on each occasion," claimed one of the victims aged nine.

Boys interviewed narrated different ordeals that took place at the cattle-dip at Mjini estate.

They claimed the man gave each one of them varying amounts of money ranging from Sh200 to Sh1,000, adding that those he gave higher amounts were suspected to be "loose talkers" who he threatened with dire consequences if they revealed his acts to anyone.

Investigation

A senior officer at the Bungoma Police Station said police have launched a manhunt for the suspect.

"Right now we can’t say much because investigation is ongoing and the minors are still recording statements. We will definitely catch up with him and charge him accordingly," said the officer.

Parents asked police officers to protect their children following high cases of sodomy and rape at the slum.

"We want an assurance that our boys and girls are safe because today we have not allowed them to even go to school. The suspect is still on the loose out there and he might do more harm to our young ones," said a parent.

The parents threatened to look for the suspect and subject him to mob justice if police delay to arrest him.

Recently, an evangelist in Kitui County was jailed for 21 years for sodomy. Jeremiah Munyoki of the Jesus Worship Centre in Kitui was convicted by Kitui senior resident magistrate Ms Beatrice Kimemia for the unnatural act against a 13 year-old boy.