(Jamaica Gleaner) Moravian pastor Rupert Clarke has been sentenced to eight years in prison on two counts of having sexual intercourse with a person under the age of 16 years old.
The sentences are to run at the same time which means Clarke will only serve eight years in prison.
The complainants are both sisters.
Clarke was sentenced in the St Elizabeth Circuit Court almost four months after he pleaded guilty to the crimes.
On November 29, Clarke had appeared in court for the hearing of an application by the prosecution to transfer the sexual offence matter from the St Elizabeth Circuit Court to the Home Circuit Court in Kingston.
Justice Martin Gayle reportedly granted the application for the matter to be transferred to Kingston when Clarke’s lawyer Deborah Martin asked for his client to re-enter a plea.
That’s when Clarke changed his plea from not-guilty to guilty on two counts of having sex with a person under sixteen years old.
Clarke, 64 was the pastor of the Nazareth Moravian Church in Manchester.
The police report that in December 2016, a team was on patrol in a community near Santa Cruz when they observed a parked car that aroused their suspicion.
They went to investigate and reportedly found the pastor in a compromising position with a child.
He was immediately taken into police custody.
Further investigations revealed that Clarke also had a sexual relationship with the child’s sister.
