[p]A pastor from Gambia has been declared wanted by authorities in Ibadan, Oyo state after he allegedly stole 52 phones and other items from worshippers who had attended his crusade. The pastor, identified as Dr Owen Abraham, reportedly told the congregants on the last day of the event that the holy spirit had directed him to tell them to hand in their phones. However, after the crusade ended, the pastor was nowhere to be found and all attempts to locate him have yielded no relevant outcome.
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According to reports, the clergyman had lured many widows with a promise to give out bags of rice and cash, and also promised to empower students with scholarships. One victim, Mrs Grace Akintola, who spoke with Vanguard, said that the pastor approached an Igbo lady in their area to assist him in gathering widows and students, claiming he wanted to help them.
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[p]Mrs. Akintola went on to say, "He promised some people that attended the crusade money. Even politicians cannot give out such amounts he promised. On the last day of the crusade, he sold a bottle of water for us at the rate of N4,800. He said perfume is inside the bottle water. Many people paid for the water."
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Another victim added, "He said no phone should ring, that was why he collected all the phones. In fact, a lady stood up and wanted to take his photographs but he seized the phone from her. On the last day of the crusade, he said he wanted to go and rest at the hotel where he lodged. He later said he wanted to go and eat at UI; we don’t know how he escaped with our belongings. As a man of God, we respected him a lot, we didn’t know that he wanted to use the name of God to dupe us."
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