Stephen Nwaigwe, a former Catholic priest, has been placed in jail after it was alleged that he had raped and impregnated a teenager in Anambra State.
When the case was brought before an Awka Chief Magistrates’ Court, it was also known as the Children, Sexual, and Gender-Based Violence Court of Anambra State. This court granted the remand.
In 2018, the Two Hearts of Love Congregation, a well-known Catholic faith-based religious organization in Orlu, Imo State, fired several priests, including Nwaigwe, for alleged actions that damaged the church’s reputation.
Nwaigwe has continued to practice religion anyway, traveling from place to place and accepting invitations from people and organizations despite being fired as a priest.
He was charged with getting a minor pregnant and transporting her to Benin City, Edo State, for the baby’s delivery; however, the police claimed the baby’s current location is still unknown.
According to rumors, Nwaigwe first encountered the adolescent at the St. Albert the Great Catholic religious parish in Obosi, Anambra State, after receiving an invitation for a religious event.
When the girl was fourteen years old, Nwaigwe allegedly abducted her from her parents and moved in with her, promising to pay for her schooling. She also claimed to have been his cook.
She went on to say that when she told him she was pregnant, the former priest drove her from their home in Ihiala, Anambra State, to a couple he introduced to her as his brother and brother’s wife, somewhere in Benin City, Edo State.
“My father told me to report that I was gang-raped,” the woman stated as they traveled to Benin City. “I gave birth to my baby at a native birth attendant’s house in Benin City, and when I made efforts for them to show me the dead baby, they said it had been buried,” the woman added. “But I have never been raped before, except the ones he did to me in his house.”
The police prosecutor told the court during the remand procedure that there was a reasonable basis to warrant the former priest’s custody.
Nonetheless, the defense attorney requested the defendant’s bail, pleading with the court to exercise its discretionary power in the defendant’s favor. The defense cited Sections 35 and 36 of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, as amended, as well as Sections 13(3), 71(3), 72, and 73 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law (ACJL) of Anambra State, 2022.
In addition, he begged the court to release the former priest on the broadest possible bond, promising to keep Nwaigwe under strict supervision if released.
However, while opposing the defence counsel’s bail motion, the police prosecutor noted that the case before the court was an offense against a juvenile who was allegedly under the spiritual guardianship of the defendant.
The prosecuting police officer emphasized that the defendant had since been suspended by Roman Catholic Church authorities, noting that the claim that the defendant had serious health challenges warranting bail was never certified by a qualified medical personnel, as required by law.
If granted bail, the defendant, according to the police prosecutor, may jump bail and flee the nation without facing prosecution.
In ruling on the bail motion, the presiding Chief Magistrate, Genevieve Osakwe, remarked that the case before the court was a felony punishable by life imprisonment and expressed sadness that rape against minors was becoming more common in society.
While advising Nwaigwe to seek bail before the High Court, the presiding Chief Magistrate directed the prosecuting police officer to forward the original case file to the office of the Anambra State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice.
She rescheduled the case for December 6, 2023, for a report of compliance.