A man, 58, has been sentenced to life for defiling a minor. [Photo: Huffington Post]

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A court in Meru has jailed for life a Catholic Church elder for defiling a nine-year-old girl.

Joseph Koome, 58, was accused of defiling the minor on March 15, 2015, in Barner village near Kiirua market.

The court heard that the accused tricked the girl by offering mandazi and when she eventually went to his business premises alone on a Sunday, he took the child to a back room and defiled her.

While making the ruling on Thursday, Senior Resident Magistrate Evans Mbicha said he was convinced beyond any reasonable doubt that the accused committed the act.

"I find the evidence of the complainant explicit and consistent," Mbicha said.