How Popular Bishop Used Church Sermons To Lure 44,000 Nigerians Into N178Million Fraud Scheme In Jos, EFCC Witness Tells Court

A witness in the ongoing fraud trial of Bishop Katung Jonas and Okewole Dayo, on the alleged N178 million fraud, has told the Federal High Court sitting in Jos, Plateau State, that the defendants allegedly used church sermons and religious influence to lure him, his wife and over 40,000 other victims into investing in their fraudulent cooperative society scheme.

The First Prosecution Witness (PW1), Sulaiman Kwalla, who testified before Justice Sharon T. Ishaya on Tuesday, said that he and his wife were convinced to invest in the Covenant Fadama Multi-purpose Cooperative Society, based on the trust they placed in Bishop Jonas’ spiritual authority and televised sermons.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is prosecuting Bishop Jonas and Dayo, chairman and secretary of the cooperative society, respectively, on a 23-count charge related to obtaining money under false pretences to the tune of N178,885,000.

Led in evidence by the EFCC counsel Ibrahim Buba, Kwalla explained that he invested N200,000 of his own money and an additional N100,000 on behalf of his wife, Halima Ibrahim Danyaro, after watching promotional advertisements of the cooperative on Plateau Radio Television Corporation (PRTV), which frequently followed Bishop Jonas’ sermons.

“Based on the Bishop’s religious standing and the promise of a 10 percent monthly return, I was convinced it was a genuine investment,” Kwalla told the court.

“I filled a form and was directed to pay into Dadin Kowa Microfinance Bank, said to be owned by the cooperative. I was issued official receipts for both payments,” he added.

However, Kwalla revealed that by the end of the first month, neither he, his wife, nor any of the subscribers received the promised dividend.

He said that he visited the cooperative society’s office on Secretariat Road, Jos, only to meet a crowd of other disappointed investors.

According to him, on June 4, 2012, a large crowd of agitated investors gathered at the office, demanding a refund of their money.

Kwalla told the court that the situation nearly spiralled out of control, prompting armed policemen to evacuate Dayo, the second defendant to safety.

According to the witness, Dayo was later detained at the Plateau State Police Headquarters following the incident.

Kwalla said that a meeting was subsequently held between the police, the investors and Bishop Katung.

He noted that during the meeting, the cleric admitted to being the chairman of the cooperative society and agreed to a repayment plan beginning from July 2012, which he said Bishop Jonas had not fulfilled.

“At every turn, there were new excuses. Eventually, Bishop Katung introduced Lanre Global Concept, a consultancy firm he claimed would help recover our funds from abroad,” Kwalla said. 

“We refused, as we had no prior dealings with the firm. Later, he introduced another scheme, Global View, where he admitted to have channelled funds from the cooperative society into forex trading. All these promises turned out to be fraudulent,” he said.

He further informed the court that, after several failed repayment attempts, the investors, through their lawyer, Solomon Dalung, petitioned the EFCC, alleging fraud of over N8 billion that affected no fewer than 44,000 investors.

According to him, while his N200,000 investment was eventually refunded through an official of the cooperative society, his wife’s N100,000 is still stuck with the cleric and his accomplice.