A 33-year-old pastor, Paul Aderinwa has been remanded in prison by a magistrate’s court in Minna, Niger State for allegedly raping a minor.

Aderinwa was brought before the court yesterday, on a count charge of rape, contrary to Section 283 of the Penal Code.

Police Prosecutor, Inspector Gunduma Ibrahim, had earlier explained in the court that the case was reported to the Kpakungu Police Station on June 28 by one Oluwatoyin Joseph, resident in Gurara area of the town.

According to Ibrahim, the accused invited the 16-year-old girl to his house under the pretext of sending her on an errand, but lured her into his room and ended up raping her.

The accused, however, pleaded not guilty.

Meanwhile, the prosecutor objected to granting the accused bail, saying that further investigations on the case will be jeopardised if he was granted bail.

He also said that the case was not ordinarily bailable.

The prosecutor further prayed the court for an adjournment to enable police complete its investigations.

Making her verdict, the Magistrate, Mariam Kings, said the court lacked jurisdiction to hear the matter and, therefore, ordered the Police to forward the case file to the State Director of Public Prosecutions for legal advice.

She said the accused should be kept behind bars while the matter was adjourned till August 2 for further mentioning.