By Desire Emmanuel
A 68-year-old retired civil servant has told a Federal High Court in Jos, Plateau State, how a bishop and another person allegedly swindled him of the sum of N178 million through a fake investment scheme.
The retiree, Fasaki Olutayo Jacob, disclosed this in the ongoing trial of Okewole Dayo and Bishop Katung Jonas before Justice Sharon Ishaya of the giving details of how he was allegedly defrauded of his hard-earned savings by the two men under the guise of investment in Fadama Multi-purpose Cooperative Society.
Dayo and Jonas are standing trial on a 23-count charge bordering on obtaining money under false pretence to the tune of ₦178.885 million belonging to the man.
They were dragged to court by the operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) after the conclusion of investigation into the matter.
Led in evidence by the prosecution counsel, the 68-year-old retired civil servant told the court that he got to know Bishop Katung through a televised sermon on Plateau Radio and Television (PRTV).
“I got to know Bishop Katung through Plateau TV where I watched one of his sermons. The message he delivered that day made me believe that Fadama Multi-purpose Cooperative Society was real,” he said.
According to the man, he later visited the Maranata church located at Number 10 Miyangu street, Jos, where he met the bishop and was convinced to invest in the cooperative, which was presented as a faith-based investment platform.
“I was directed to the secretariat where I met the first defendant, Dayo, who told me that all money should be paid through Fadama Multi-purpose Cooperative Society. I went to the bank (name withheld), made payment of ₦1 million, and was issued a receipt. Later, in June 2011, I added ₦200,000, making a total of ₦1.2 million,” he testified.
Jacob further explained that investors were promised a 10 per cent monthly return on their investment and were issued small record cards where their interests were recorded.
However, he said, the payment of interests soon stopped in 2012, prompting Dayo to summon investors to a meeting at a hotel in Jos, where he pleaded for patience, assuring that all outstanding payments would be made.
Speaking further, he narrated how aggrieved investors later gathered at the Fadama office in Jos demanding refunds. According to him, tension escalated to the point that police officers had to intervene to prevent Dayo from being mobbed by angry investors.
“The police asked us to nominate some representatives to meet them at the headquarters. I was among those selected, along with Suleiman Kwalla, a pastor and other three people whose names I can’t fully recall now,” he said.
Jacob told the court that after the police could not resolve the matter, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission was invited to take over the investigation.
He said both defendants later made statements to the EFCC and attended a reconciliation meeting with some of the affected investors at No. 10 Miyangu Road, Jos.
