Social workers picketed outside the court where a KZN pastor accused of raping more than 13 children appeared.
DURBAN – The pastor who was recently arrested for allegedly raping more than 13 children in northern KwaZulu-Natal abandoned his application for bail after appearing in court.
KwaZulu-Natal National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson-Kara said a 55-year-old man appeared in the Nquthu District Court on five counts of rape and three counts of sexual assault on Friday.
His alleged victims are boys and girls between the ages of nine and 14 years old, Ramkisson-Kara said.
“He has abandoned his application for bail. The matter was remanded to October 14.”
KZN Department of Social Development spokesperson Mhlabunzima Memela said that social workers picketed outside the court as the pastor accused of raping more than 13 children appeared in court.
On Thursday, Social Development alerted the media to the incident.
It said a pastor in KZN was arrested for allegedly raping more than 13 children between the ages of five and 17 in Luvisi village in ward 13 of Nquthu Local Municipality, in the northern part of the province.
It is alleged the pastor had been luring young girls and boys to watch cartoons, and later played pornographic videos that he watched with the children.
The man of the cloth was allegedly caught when a boy reported the matter to his mother and provided details of some of the other alleged victims – 11 boys and two girls.
The department said the victim’s mother had verified the information with other victims before reporting it to local police.
It is alleged the pastor started molesting children in 2021, with the last incident having taken place on Sunday, September 18, 2022.
