Police charge church leaders with N85.9m ‘fraud’

Robert Egbe

THE Force Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Department (Force CIID), Annex, Ikoyi, Lagos has charged three leaders of the Celestial Church of Christ (CCC) with N85,914,500 fraud.

The police arraigned first to third defendants  – John Rotimi Omotosho (a.k.a Jorotom); Folashade Ogundipe and Boye Olaniyan – before Justice Ayokunle Faji of a Federal High Court in Lagos.

Folashade’s firm, Folafunmi Integrated Ltd, was arraigned alongside the trio.

They were accused of conspiring and defrauding the church’s headquarters at Imeko, Ogun State, of the sum under the false pretence of using the money for the church’s development.

The police claimed they issued several Zenith Bank cheques with which they withdrew the money from the church’s development project account with the bank, through false pretence.

Police counsel Mr. C. J. Ijeoma  said the offences contravened Sections 8(a),1(1)(a) and 1(1) (a) & (b) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and other fraud-related offences Act, 2010 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.

Each defendant pleaded not guilty.

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Their counsel, Olawale Okenile, said he had filed their bail applications and same had been served on the prosecution.

Ijeoma, a Chief Superintended (CSP), applied for a trial date and prayed the court to remand the defendants pending the determination of their bail applications.

Upon enquiry, Justice Faji heard that the defendants did not jump administrative bail before being charged to court.

He granted each defendant bail.

The judge directed three members of the church to file an undertaken, affidavit of means and to produce a Bond of N350,000 for each defendant, before the trio would be allowed to go home, failing which they would be remanded.

Justice Faji held: “These members of the church, Adeosun Israel Oladipo, Assistant Shepherd, CCC, Jerusalem Cathedral, Shasha; Afolabi Tolorunloju and Surakatu John, workers at CCC, Jerusalem Cathedral, Shasha, shall file an undertaken to produce the defendants at the next adjourned date.

“In view of the issue, church and personalities in the matter, they shall be handed over to the three Church members, who will also produce Bond of N350,000, each and a means of identification.”

Justice Faji then adjourned till March 3, for the hearing of the defendants’ bail applications.