Sex Allegations Lead to Child Bride Investigation at Philly Mosque

Police are now investigating whether child weddings are being conducted at a Philadelphia mosque after a sexual assault victim comes forward to Action News.

In a Facebook video posted two weeks ago, one of the alleged victims describes her ordeal. She’s 17 now but says she first became a child bride at 14.

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She says it didn’t last. And in 2016, she says she was married off to Rajmann Sanders, a man more than twice her age who then allegedly began sexually assaulting her and her 10-year-old sister.

“The 10-year-old was not handled correctly and everything was swept under the rug. Not only was it wrong, it was wrong to me because at the time I was still his wife,” she said.

Sanders is charged with more than a dozen sexual offenses against the girls, including rape, indecent assault, and forcible compulsion. The criminal complaint reveals Sanders threatened to shoot the older victim during one sexual assault.

Police are now investigating whether child weddings are being conducted at the Masjid Uthman Dan Fodiyo mosque on the 4800 block of Paschall.

One of the victims says her unofficial marriage took place there.

Last Friday, police conducted search warrants at the mosque and the home of a mosque leader.

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