Zimbabwean Bishop further charged with three more indecent assault crimes

A UK -based Zimbabwe born bishop who was convicted of sexually abusing members of his church has today been formally charged with three more offences of indecent assault.

Walter Masocha a former university lecturer, who led the Stirling-based Agape for All Nations Church, groped a young deaconess while he was supposed to be praying for her stomach complaint and put his hand down a schoolgirl's trousers saying he was trying to remove demons.

On Thursday the disgraced preacher who is awaiting sentencing for the first two convictions was slapped with three more charges. A Crown Office spokesman said Maschoa appeared on petition at the Stirling Sheriff Court.

Represented by solicitor Euan Scott, he made neither plea nor declaration at a brief hearing, in private. The prosecution was represented by Ann Orr. The judge continued the case for further examination, and released Masocha on bail.

The Zimbabwe-born churchman is a former accountancy lecturer at the university. He initially worked part-time as a pastor in a Pentecostal-style church, the Forward in Faith international ministry.

After a six-day trial in April this year, the jury at Falkirk Sheriff Court found Masocha guilty of both charges. Masocha's name was entered on the sex offenders register and the sentencing deferred to give time for reports, to include an assessment of the risk Masocha poses to other women and girls.

During the trial the schoolgirl, now 16, said she regarded Masocha as her "spiritual father" and, like many people in the church, called him "Dad".

She said in late 2013 she was with four other girls in an upstairs games room when Masocha came in. Giving evidence by video link she said she had been wearing "stretchy trousers".

She said: "He waved me over. He placed his hand round my lower back, and moved his hand down until he got to my underwear, and he sort of pinged my underwear.

"He repeatedly pinged my underwear, ran his hand down my bottom, and grabbed and pinched my bottom."

The pupil said she felt violated and later asked Masocha why he had done it. He replied that he had seen "demons and things that shouldn't be there" in her pants and he was clearing them away.

She added: "I just broke into tears because I thought I had been doing things wrong without realising. I felt like I had been bad."

In another incident, when the girl was 13 or 14, she said Masocha had been sitting down at his home, very close to her, advising her about school when he suddenly said: "You'll always be mine." He then kissed her on the lips.

She said at the time she was happy, because members of the church had been taught that anything they received from Masocha was a blessing from God, but now she felt "disgusted".

The deaconess said Masocha had hugged her "very intimately", caressing her back and kissing her round the neck, and saying "receive my love".

On another occasion said she had once gone to his office for prayer with a stomach complaint.