Hawks, SAPS arrest Chatsworth ‘pastor’ in rape case

A wave of shock and disgust has rippled through the community of Chatsworth after the Hawks and the Chatsworth SAPS FCS unit arrested a self-proclaimed pastor under accusations of rape and allegedly targeting young girls of the church.

According to sources, the 31- year-old man, whose identity is known to the Rising Sun, is in fact a youth leader and not an ordained pastor, despite some of the congregation believing otherwise. The communications officer of Chatsworth SAPS, Cpt Cheryl Pillay, explained the situation.

“It is alleged that on January 20, the accused had two minors, who are also congregants, visit his home in Westcliff. During the visit, the minor was sexually assaulted. On March 6, the parents of the victim, who is 14-years-old, opened up a case at the Chatsworth police station. The Chatsworth Family, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) unit held a suspect raid on March 7 where the accused was apprehended and placed in police custody. Police officers seized laptops and cellular phones during the raid. These will be sent for analysis,” said Cpt Pillay.

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In addition, sources claim that police recovered a total of seven laptops in addition to sex toys. Cpt Pillay explained that the accused appeared in the Chatsworth Magistrates Court on March 8 on charges of rape. He was denied bail.

While in court, the Rising Sun team interviewed the aunt of the victim, who will not be named to protect the identity of the child.

“I think she could not take it anymore, and she had to open up to her mum. There were rumours. The mum heard something from another churchgoer and that prompted them to ask more questions. The rumours were that he was involved with children- obviously you are not going to believe it at first. As a parent, she asked my niece, and that led to her opening up about what happened on January 20,” claimed the aunt.

The aunt claimed that on the day of the incident, the accused and his wife had invited the victim over to their Westcliff home for supper.

“Her mum usually does not send her anywhere, but on this occasion, she allowed her to go. She was also met by a 15-year-old girl, who attends our church. While she was there, the accused said that they needed cool drink, so he asked the child to accompany him to the shop. He took her to a road in Silverglen and while in the car, he told her to take off her top. She said no, but he insisted. He then pulled down his pants and asked her to perform oral sex on him. She was so scared- it was so dark and she did not know if she would be in danger so she complied with his requests before he took her back home. When they got back, while his wife was in the shower, he told them to perform acts while he recorded them. First, he asked them to kiss one another, and then perform oral sex on him once more,” the aunt further claimed.

The aunt further alleged that other girls in the church had received unsavoury and explicit messages from the man over the years.

“We do not know how long this has been going on for. There are things that they have been talking about to other kids. Other kids have mentioned that there are text messages that were sent to them- my daughter being one of them. They sent a message to my other niece, the victim’s older sister, two years ago, asking if she wanted to ‘swing’ with them. When she did not respond, he (the accused) deleted the message and apologised, stating that it was a mistake and was not meant for her. She (the victim) was becoming very reserved, and naughty at the same time. We have lost a few family members, recently, and we have not healed from this. I think she has bottled a lot of this inside of her. I think that is why she was afraid to tell us initially what had happened to her. We were disgusted. These were people we looked up to. It is very painful because we are a close-knit church and community. They put on this façade in church and wherever we are, and that is why we could not believe it. They were a Godly, spiritual, and loving couple, always wanting to help the church. It happened to our own child, and she would not lie about this. They always ask for the kids to come over to their place, but we have never sent our children, except for this one time. I just hope that if there are more victims, they should come forward because we need to ensure that justice is served,” said the aunt strongly.

Head of legal at SA Outreach and Emergency Services, Tymara Ketusha Samuel, said that she had been instructed to sit as watching brief on the matter on behalf of the victim and her family to assist in the prosecution and navigation of the legal processes and procedures.

“SA Outreach and Emergency Services has created a petition as a call to the public to show support for the victim and her family and to further show cause as to why bail should be denied. The family is devastated by the incident and asks that members of the public sign and share the petition. The minor (who shall remain unnamed to respect her dignity and privacy) is safe and is receiving the necessary help that she needs. As head of legal, too many child abuse cases of a sexual nature have been brought to my attention in recent months. We urge the community to come forward should you know or suspect crimes of such a nature. The NPO is here to assist and get victims the necessary help they need. It is time the community takes a stand to protect our youth, to save our children and to help put an end to GBVF and child abuse, which are rife within the community,” said Samuel.

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Chairman of the Chatsworth Spiritual Crime Prevention Forum, Rev Cyril Pillay, also commented.

He said, “Society must do everything in its power to ensure the safety of all children in society. We commend the investigators, who expedited this investigation to bring the alleged perpetrator before the criminal justice system, thus ensuring that the victims’ voices can be heard with justice to follow. Misinformation can have a negative impact on investigations and court proceedings. It can also be misleading on social media platforms, especially if it has not been verified by police before release. The accused in this rape case is not an ordained pastor of the Pastors Fraternal, however, he is a member of a congregation at a church in Bayview. There has been a social and religious outcry from men of the cloth, whose spiritual calling has become questionable by tainted comments on social media platforms. It is therefore my humble appeal to media representatives and journalists to seek clarity and confirmation prior to dissemination of information to the public. As the Spiritual Crime Prevention Forum, we will offer victim support and prayers to the courageous victim,” concluded Rev Pillay.

The accused will reappear in the Chatsworth Magistrates Court on March 15 for a formal bail application.