{"id":347587,"date":"2025-08-15T22:09:32","date_gmt":"2025-08-15T22:09:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/347587\/"},"modified":"2025-08-15T22:09:32","modified_gmt":"2025-08-15T22:09:32","slug":"church-pastor-abused-woman-and-eight-children-over-two-decades","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/347587\/","title":{"rendered":"Church pastor abused woman and eight children over two decades"},"content":{"rendered":"

A church pastor abused a woman and eight children over a period spanning more than two decades.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Rev James Haram put his traumatised victims through ordeals branded \u201ctruly awful\u201d by a judge.<\/p>\n

This included the 51-year-old raping a woman and striking children with a wooden spoon or a rod.<\/p>\n

Haram \u2013 who had been with the Free Church of Scotland (Continuing) in Glasgow \u2013 was found guilty of a total of 19 charges of physical and sexual abuse.<\/p>\n

The crimes spanned between 1997 and 2020 at addresses in the city as well as Dumbarton, West Dunbartonshire and in South Ayrshire.<\/p>\n

Haram was remanded in custody at the High\u00a0Court\u00a0in Glasgow and will be sentenced in September.<\/p>\n

The woman regularly suffered at his hands. He called her names, punched walls, chucked household items around in anger and threatened to hit her with a piano stool.<\/p>\n

He tracked where she went, checked who she was talking to and forced her to take part in religious activities.<\/p>\n

Haram once mowed over the flowers the woman had taken time to grow.<\/p>\n

The pastor also suggested she should kill herself.<\/p>\n

The violence escalated with Haram grabbing and choking the woman. She recalled her \u201cwhole body going limp\u201d.<\/p>\n

Jurors heard the Haram would pester the woman into sex while making biblical references. She was told that she had to \u201csubject\u201d herself to him.<\/p>\n

The victim recalled how she would sob with \u201ctears down her face\u201d.<\/p>\n

Haram said: \u201cI want to make clear that every sexual encounter was consensual.\u201d<\/p>\n

His KC Brian McConnachie put to him: \u201cThe jury may have got the impression that there was many times she would give in due to you constantly badgering her.\u201d<\/p>\n

Haram replied: \u201cThat is not true \u2013 there were plenty of times that she said no.\u201d<\/p>\n

He claimed during his evidence that the woman had \u201cmany wonderful gifts\u201d, but that she had used them to \u201cturn against\u201d him. He called her \u201cincredibly convincing\u201d.<\/p>\n

But, the reverend of Dumbarton did accept there were \u201coccasional flare-ups of aggression\u201d.<\/p>\n

The abuse of the children was said to include carrying out \u201cmodesty checks\u201d on girls to see what they were wearing.<\/p>\n

He compared one to the comic book villain Harley Quinn.<\/p>\n

Haram said: \u201cAs God is my witness, there is not an ounce in truth in that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Prosecutor John Macpherson put to him that one girl gave \u201ca fairly graphic account\u201d of being \u201cregularly beaten\u201d by Haram.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He insisted this was \u201cwholly fabricated\u201d.<\/p>\n

Jurors heard he flew into a rage while in a car with two of the children and claimed he would deliberately crash the vehicle, killing them all.<\/p>\n

But, Haram told the trial: \u201cThey knew I did not mean it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Judge Tom Hughes deferred sentencing for reports.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He told Haram: \u201cI think it is fair to say this has been a deeply distressing case for everyone involved.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe jury has heard a different version of events from all the witnesses who gave evidence.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt appears that (what happened) was truly awful \u2013 incidents of violence, aggression, all sorts of difficulties and the sexual offending which took place.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring that period, you appeared to be living a life whereby you were acting in an official capacity as a man of the cloth.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have now been convicted of extremely serious offences which will obviously carry a lengthy custodial sentence.\u201d<\/p>\n

Haram had been on bail, but was remanded meantime. He appeared to be clutching a bible as he was led to the cells.<\/p>\n

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