Pastor in court for beating up woman who refused to join church

A breakaway pastor has been accused of causing grievous harm to a female congregant for failing to join his new church.

Makadara Senior Resident Magistrate Lewis Gatheru heard that Tobias Ogutu assaulted Nancy Owuor on September 18 in Ngomongo area within Nairobi's Korogocho slum.

Owuor lost her teeth in the scuffle that resulted from her refusal to heed to his overtures and join his new church and instead continuing to worship in the old one.

Ogutu, however, denied the charge, which stated that the two were members of the same church before leadership wrangles broke out and he opted to start his own a few metres away.

He is said to have contacted Owuor on September 17 and asked her to shun going to the old church.

On the material day, a Sunday, Ogutu is said to have waited for them as they were going to church in a bid to sway them to his new church.

However, he was infuriated when they declined his overtures and he followed her to the gate of the old church in a bid to block her from entering the premises.

It is then that he is alleged to have grabbed Owuor, punched her in the jaw and headbutted her before wrestling her to the ground as he continued serving her with blows.

Other church members who responded to her calls for help were overpowered by Ogutu. It took the intervention of more congregants to disentangle the accused from Owuor who at this time was bleeding from her teeth. Her forehead was also swollen.

She sought medical attention before reporting the matter to police who arrested Ogutu.

In court, he claimed that he had made peace with the complainant. He was granted a bond of Sh100,000 pending mention on October 11 when Owuor is expected to tell the court whether she wished to withdraw the matter.