A prosecution witness, Fasaki Olutayo Jacob, told the Federal High Court sitting in Jos, Plateau State, how he was allegedly defrauded by Bishop Katung Jonas and Okewole Dayo.
Fasaki said he was defrauded under the pretext of investing in a cooperative scheme.
The two defendants are facing trial before Justice Sharon T. Ishaya on a 23-count charge bordering on obtaining money under false pretence to the tune of ₦178,885,000.
Led in evidence by prosecution counsel Ibrahim Buba, the 68-year-old retired civil servant, who testified as the second prosecution witness, said he was lured into the investment after watching Bishop Katung’s sermon on Plateau Radio and Television (PRTV).
“I got to know Bishop Katung through Plateau TV broadcast station 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.
The witness told the court that he later met the Bishop in person at Maranata Church in Jos and was introduced to the first defendant, Dayo, who directed him to make payments into the cooperative’s account.
“I was directed to the Secretariat where I met the first defendant, Dayo, who told me that all monies should be paid through Fadama Multi-purpose Cooperative Society. I went to the bank, Dadin Kowa Microfinance Bank, 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 said investors were promised a 10 percent monthly return on investment but payments stopped in 2012, prompting meetings and media assurances from the Bishop that were never fulfilled.
“At one point, Bishop Katung appeared on a PRTV programme where he publicly promised that investors would be paid the following week, but nothing came out of it,” he said.
He explained that the matter was later taken to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) after police mediation failed, adding that both defendants made statements to the anti-graft agency and attended a reconciliation meeting with aggrieved investors.
“At the meeting, Bishop Katung promised that the cooperative had assets and even gave us a copy of a landed property document. He said we could help find a buyer so he could pay investors. But when the property was eventually sold, we didn’t get any money,” Jacob said.
The witness identified his payment receipt, which was admitted in evidence as Exhibit F. Under cross-examination, he confirmed that his statement to the EFCC in 2012 was true, though he admitted that the first defendant was not part of the television broadcast that convinced him to invest.