Nagercoil Court grants conditional bail to Benedict Anto

CHENNAI: Nagercoil District Magistrate Court granted conditional bail to Benedict Anto (29), a church priest in prison accused of sexual harassment, on Tuesday.

He was arrested by a special team of Kanniyakumari police after obscene videos and pictures of him with some women went viral on social media.

Benedict, a resident of Fathima Nagar in Vilavancode in the district, preached sermons in churches in Kanniyakumari district. An 18–year-old nursing student from Pechiparai lodged a complaint with district cyber crime branch seeking action against the priest.

The victim was allegedly subjected to sexual abuse and received threats on social media. Based on the victim’s complaint, police registered a case against the church priest Benedict under five different sections Four other women have also lodged complaints against the priest, sources said.