Pastor appears in court for homosexual act in Abuja

A 27-year-old pastor, Emmanuel Onyiuke, on Thursday appeared before an Abuja Senior Magistrates’ Court in Karu, Abuja, charged with homosexual act with a 19-year-old.
Onyiuke, who is the General Overseer of Divine Power Healing Ministry in Jikwoyi, FCT, committed the alleged offence on August 2.
The accused was arraigned on a four-count-charge of causing hurt by means of poison with intent to commit homosexual and unnatural offence.
Prosecutor, Atteh Effiong, told the court that the accused gave the 19-year-old some alcoholic drinks, which were laced with sleep inducing substance.
Effiong added: “The victim woke up and saw himself lying on the bed of the accused person in his bedroom.
“The accused had sexual intercourse with him through his anus against his will, which left him with serious injuries afterwards.”
He said that the offence was contrary to Sections 284, 249 and 285 of the Penal Code.
The accused, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The Counsel to the accused, Tochukwu Alosor, made an oral application for the bail of the accused.
Alosor argued that the offence was not a capital one.
He urged the court to grant the accused bail on liberal terms.
He added that the accused would not jump bail because he had a church within the jurisdiction of the court.
Ruling the application for bail, Senior Magistrate Anna Akobi, granted bail to the accused in the sum of N200,000 and a surety in like sum.
Akobi held that the surety must be a Federal Civil Servant not below grade level 10, who must reside within the jurisdiction of the court.
She adjourned the case to September 19 for hearing.