Pastor jailed for rape
daily star ^ | 07.18.08 | GILBERT BAYORAN & PATRICK PANGILINAN

Posted on Friday, July 18, 2008 12:59:10 PM by Coleus

A Baptist pastor is now in jail facing three charges for rape in Silay City, while an escapee from the Provincial Jail of Negros Occidental, was recaptured yesterday in Escalante City, police records show. In Kabankalan City, a 13-year-old elementary school student was also allegedly sexually-molested by a 16-year-old boy, Wednesday, police and radio reports said yesterday.

The 46-year-old pastor whose identity is being withheld, gave himself up to a team of policemen led by SPO2 Mateo Requintina who served the arrest warrant on him at Tres Fuentes in Silay City, Wednesday. Police records show that the suspect was charged for allegedly molesting his 14-year-old half-sister on Jan. 4 and 5, 2007. The victim is now under the custody of the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Silay City.

Silay Regional Trial Court Judge Reynaldo Alon who issued the arrest warrant denied bail to the suspect. The girl in Kabankalan, whose name is being withheld by the police, was on an errand for her grandfather when she was waylaid and raped by the boy, identified as alias “Rico”, at about 5 p.m. Wednesday, DYHB reported.

Supt. Calixto Mabugat, Kabankalan police chief, confirmed the incident but added that he could not give complete details of the case yet because their station’s Women and Children’s Concerns center investigators are still probing it. “Rico” was reportedly turned over to the police and placed under the custody of social workers after he surrendered to barangay officials at about 2 p.m. yesterday. Last month a laborer was detained also for sexual-molestation complaints in Kabankalan.