General Overseer of Temple international church & wife sentenced to 16 years in prison over N52 million fraud
A Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja, on Wednesday, found guilty and sentenced the General Overseer of Temple International Church, Harry Uyanwanne and his wife, Oluwakemi Odemuyiwa (a.k.a Kristein Uyanwanne) alongside the church.
Justice Mojisola Dada gave the verdict after finding them guilty of the offences preferred against them.
The judge also ordered that the third defendant, (Temple International Church), should be deregistered and closed down for using the name of God and the church to defraud people.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission had filed seven counts bordering on stealing, dishonest conversion, false presentation and fraud against the convicts.
When the EFCC arraigned the convicts on February 25, 2020, they pleaded not guilty, and the prosecution commenced trial.
During the trial, the prosecution counsel, Mr Babatunde Sonoiki, called five witnesses while the defence called two witnesses.
Delivering the judgment, the judge held that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and, therefore, found both of them guilty.
Justice Dada sentenced the duo to three years imprisonment on count one, while on count two to six, the first convict, Harry Uyanwanne, was sentenced to seven years imprisonment.
The second convict (Odemuyiwa) was sentenced to three years imprisonment, but the court discharged and acquitted them on count seven.
Uyanwanne was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment while Odemuyiwa (a.k.a Kristein Uyanwanne) was sentenced to six years.
The judge ordered that the sentence should run concurrently.
Justice Dada also ordered the third convict, Temple International Church, to be deregistered and closed down.
“Using the name of God and church to defraud people, I order that the third convict should be deregistered and closed down,” she said.
The judge ordered the convicts to restitute the sum of N31m to the nominal complainant within 60 days of the judgment.
The EFCC had alleged that sometime in March 2016, the convicts dishonestly converted the sum of N10m for their own use, property of the late Mrs. Janet Adeola Odemuyiwa.
The anti-graft agency said that the convicts, with false intent to defraud, sold the property known as Plot 32, Block 9, Magodo Residential Scheme 1, Ikeja Local Government to one Mr. Kingsley Atere for the sum of N42m on the false presentation that the first convict was authorised to sell the property by the bonafide owner, the late Mrs. Odemuyiwa.
According to the EFCC, the offences committed contravened Section 1 (2) and (3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act No. 14 2006 and Sections 278 and 285 (1) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State of Nigeria No. 11, 2011.
