Presiding Pastor of the Power of the Holy Ghost Evangelical Ministry, Prophet Cletus Ilongwo has been arrested and arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for allegedly defrauding his church member of N59.7m.

The man of God was arraigned before a Lagos State Special Offences Court. We gathered that several security operatives stormed the church located in Shoba community in the Abule-Ado area of Lagos on Saturday, November 3, 2018 to arrest him.

Insiders said that the pastor was initially arrested early this year by the police and the EFCC after a former member of the church reported that he defrauded him of N85m, which led to the loss of his job in one of the first generation banks in the country.

The pastor allegedly jumped bail and left his surety to languish in the EFCC detention, while efforts to re-arrest him proved abortive.

The man of God was said to have received the said amount from one Obinna Ezenwaka at different times in 2016 on the pretext of helping him to purchase a property located at 165C, Diamond Estate, Amuwo-Odofin.

The charges read in part; “That you, Cletus Ilongwo, on January 29, 2016, at Lagos, within the Ikeja Juridical Division, dishonestly converted for your own use the sum of N10m, being money received through your Zenith Bank account number 1003495899 from Obinna Ezenwaka meant for the purchase of the property situated at No 165C, Block 12, Diamond Estate, Amuwo-Odofin, Lagos.”

The presiding judge, Justice Sherifat Solebo, adjourned the matter till November 14 and 19, respectively for hearing of the bail application and commencement of trial. She ordered that Ilongwo be remanded in prison pending the approval of his bail application.