Palmyra man charged with molestation of 7-year-old girl inside church; preliminary hearing set for March 25

PALMYRA, Mo. — A Palmyra man arrested on Feb. 1 and charged with statutory sodomy of a child under the age of 12 will have a preliminary hearing in Marion County Circuit Court in Palmyra on March 25.

Elijah K. Lewis, 18, is lodged in the Marion County Jail on a $100,000 bond. A warrant for his arrest was issued on Jan. 31, and he was arrested the next day. A bond appearance hearing was held on Feb. 4.

Matthew Brown of St. Louis is serving as counsel for Lewis. The judge for the case is Jennifer Richardson.

Marion County Prosecuting Attorney Luke Bryant said Brown, if found guilty by a jury, faces a term of either life imprisonment or a term of no less than five years.

A probable cause statement filed by the Marion County Sheriff’s Department said a detective received a report on Jan. 9 of a child molestation at Mission Hill Baptist Church, 44653 Business 61. The report stated that the victim, a 7-year-old female, was taken to an isolated part of the church, and Lewis allegedly put his hands down her pants.

A forensic interview of the victim was conducted on Jan. 21. She gave the interview details of how Lewis touched her, then used anatomical dolls provided by the interview to show what had happened. She described Lewis using lotion, then said what color the lotion was and the bottle it came in.

The victim said during the interview that Lewis had touched her four other times, and that Lewis was caught in the act by a sibling and a teacher.