Pastor Kumi, 43, who was absent when the case was called yesterday at the court presided over by Ellen Amoah, had denied the charges of defilement and incest levelled against him and was on remand to reappear on January 22, 2013.
ASP Acquah, the prosecutor, informed the court that the accused person had been married to the victim’s mother, one Rose Asare, for the past 14 years and had three children with her.
The prosecutor narrated that in 2012 the victim’s mother, who is the complainant, was admitted at Ridge Hospital for about three weeks to deliver her last baby.
During the period, the victim and her younger sister were living with their father in the house.
One night the accused went to the children’s room while they were asleep, and started caressing the victim.
When the victim opened her eyes and saw what her father was doing, Pastor Kumi allegedly ordered her to keep quiet or else she would die.
The pastor reportedly then took advantage of the absence of the complainant and had sex with her.
ASP Acquah said after satisfying himself, Pastor Kumi warned the victim never to disclose her ordeal to anyone or else he would kill her.
As a result of the threat, the victim did not inform anybody but later started limping.
On December 30, 2012, the victim found it difficult to walk, so she was sent to Ridge Hospital by her mother for medical treatment.
According to the prosecutor, when the victim was examined by a doctor, it was discovered that she had been defiled.
The victim who was initially reluctant to disclose who the perpetrator was, after persistent interrogation, mentioned her father as the one responsible for her predicament.
The matter was subsequently reported to the police at Sowutuom, and later transferred to the Tesano Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU) where a medical form was issued for the child to attend hospital.