Noah Abraham, founder of Alaromi Ugbesi Church in Omuoke, Ekiti State, who last year made headlines for allegedly collecting 3.1 million naira from church members as a ticket to heaven, has been arrested again for more serious crimes.
Vanguard reports that the controversial pastor was this time arrested by the Ekiti State Police Command in collaboration with the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) for allegedly kidnapping over nine persons, including minors, and impregnating the wife of a choir coordinator. Among the hostages were the children of members he hypnotized, brainwashed, and turned against their parents.
The parents of the hostage children, members of the church, and the legitimate wife of Pastor Abraham protested against the Ekiti State Police Command and pleaded with the government and relevant authorities to assist them in freeing their children, wives, and relatives from the pastor’s captivity.
According to them, Pastor Abraham forced their children to drop out of school, and a 27-year-old man, already working for an unnamed company and given an official car, was told to resign and confined to the camp without any special mission.
When interviewed by journalists, Dare Ikuenayo, the church choir coordinator, admitted that the pastor “kidnapped” the mother of his three children and got her pregnant.
He said, “One day the pastor called me and informed me that my wife had the gift of prophecy and that he would allow me to stay at his house for a month to work for God. Suddenly, however, I noticed that my wife did not want to see me or talk to me. When I raised my eyebrows, the pastor told me in church that he had taken my wife in himself. I did my best, but it was all in vain until he impregnated my wife and moved her completely into his own home.”
According to the testimony of the pastor’s wife, Mrs. Mary Abraham, after the heavenly mission was aborted, one night when they were in Om o Ekiti together, the husband came and told the choir coordinator’s wife to leave because he wanted her to move in.
He told me that the current job at hand required a woman to be with him, and so he did, and he kicked me out and denied me access to our three children.” Yesterday, when I saw my son brought to the police, I cried. I am begging the Nigerians to help me separate my children from him”.
Similarly, one of the pastors working for Abraham said that his son, who was already working for a reputable institution, was asked to resign and held hostage. The pastor told the following story.
‘Even when we filed a complaint at the police station, he offered us access to two of our three children, but on our way home he called them and told them to run home. He would always tell us that we had all sorts of curses and demons working against us and that we should sell our property and bring in the money. I have invested almost $7 million in the church and have nothing left. Even my children do not want to see me.
Another elderly woman, sister of Pastor Abraham, claimed that he took almost one million naira from her on another occasion on the grounds of cleansing her of evil spirits.
There have also been many other complaints against Pastor Abraham, whose story is too detailed and sensitive to be published in the media. Reacting to this, Pastor Abraham said that the ticket to heaven was his first assignment and that he had finished what God had sent him to do on earth and was ready to return to his Creator. He said he was fulfilled because he had completed his mission as God had directed, but declined to give a reason for his actions.
Meanwhile, the wife of the coordinator whom the founder impregnated is still at large.
Sunday Abutu, spokesman for the Ekiti State Police Command, confirmed the incident to the press and said investigations are ongoing in cooperation with NAPTIP.
Pastor Abraham was arrested on April 27, 2022 in Omuo-Ekiti after he gathered over 40 people to his camp and collected 310,000 naira per person for a ticket to heaven, but was granted bail by a magistrate court.
