The man of God, identified as Adegoke Adewuyi was arrested by Nigeria’s Ekiti State police while he and his accomplice were lodging in a hotel where they staged the entire scam.
While in the hotel, the pastor and his accomplice pretended that he was being held hostage by kidnappers and demanded a whopping three million Naira from the congregants.
Fortunately, before the church members could finish making contributions to raise the ransom money, the police arrested pastor Adegoke Adewuyi.
Following his arrest, the man of God attributed his action to the work of the devil, saying the magnitude of the offence only dawned on him after he found himself in the grips of the police.
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has condemned pastor Adewuyi’s conduct, saying it was ungodly and unbiblical. Chairman of the association, Rev. Joshua Orikogbe said such conducts bring Christendom into disrepute.
Meanwhile, a church member of pastor Adewuyi revealed that he was in the habit of engaging in fraudulent activities, including forging signatures to withdraw money from the church’s accounts.
The spokesperson of the Ekiti Police Command said that further investigation was ongoing into the matter and the suspects would be arraigned once it was concluded.
Kidnapping is one of the serious crimes in Nigeria, which authorities are grappling to bring under control. It has however come to light that a good number of such crimes are plotted by some unscrupulous individuals to make money from unsuspecting relatives and other close associates.