A single mother of two, Sandra Okpara, has recovered N1,640,200 she mistakenly transferred to an account linked to Pastor Jerry Eze’s Streams of Joy International, barely a day after her desperate appeal for help went viral on social media.
Okpara had taken to social media on Friday to seek assistance from members of the public after discovering that she had inadvertently transferred the money to the wrong account. She explained that the funds did not belong to her and were meant for payments she was expected to make.
In a video posted online, the distressed woman appealed to anyone who could help trace the money and facilitate its recovery.
“This money is not my money. I cannot do offering of 1,640,200. Please help me trace the accounts,” she said.
Speaking with PUNCH Online on Saturday, Okpara explained that the transfer occurred shortly after she had made a N1,000 payment as an offering. She said she subsequently intended to transfer more than N1.6m to a Zenith Bank account but inadvertently selected the wrong beneficiary.
“My hand just clicked that one. Before God and man, it was erroneous,” she said.
According to her, she only discovered the mistake after completing the transaction and opening the transfer receipt to confirm the details.
She described the moment as frightening, saying she immediately realised that the substantial amount had gone to an unintended recipient.
“I didn’t see it. I just made the transfer. After I did it, I had to open the receipt. I was screaming. I had to go to the toilet. I urinated. I came out. I looked at it that there was no hope,” she recalled.
Okpara said she initially sought help from her bank in an attempt to reverse the transaction.
She first visited Zenith Bank but was unable to recover the funds through the bank. She subsequently went to Moniepoint, where a complaint was lodged. However, she said she was informed that a court order would be required before further action could be taken.
“I went to Moniepoint; they lodged the complaint, but they were asking for a court order,” she said.
Faced with difficulties in reaching the intended recipient, Okpara said she turned to Pastor Jerry Eze’s online prayer platform, hoping that someone connected to the church could help her trace the money.
When her efforts did not immediately yield results, she decided to make a public appeal on social media. She said her primary objective was to have the video widely shared so that it could reach the church or individuals who could assist in recovering the money.
Her appeal subsequently attracted widespread attention online.
Streams of Joy International later acknowledged the incident and said it had contacted Okpara after becoming aware of her video.
In a post on X on Saturday, the church announced that the money had been returned to her.
“We have transferred her money back to her,” the church stated.
The church explained that it had investigated the transaction and confirmed that the transfer was erroneous before reversing the payment.
Streams of Joy International also said its official contact channels remained available to members of the public who needed to report erroneous transactions.
According to the church, Okpara had not contacted it directly through its available channels before publishing the video.
“We had not received any call, email, direct message or formal complaint from her before the video was published,” the church said.
It added that after becoming aware of the video, its representatives immediately attempted to contact Okpara through the telephone number she provided and via direct message.
The church said Okpara subsequently responded, allowing the matter to be investigated and the transaction confirmed before the funds were returned.
Speaking after receiving the refund, Okpara confirmed that she had recovered the entire amount.
Asked whether she had received her money back, she replied, “100 per cent.”
She said the refund was completed at approximately 6:22am on Saturday after a member of the church’s staff contacted her.
“I had to do the video to push out for people to share it, and it happened. And to the glory of God, around 6.22 this morning, one of their staff member called me, and I was refunded,” she said.
Okpara also clarified that her decision to publicise the incident was not intended to damage the reputation of Pastor Jerry Eze or Streams of Joy International.
“That’s the power of social media. It’s not because I want to do it to tarnish Pastor Jerry’s image,” she said.
The incident highlights the potential consequences of errors during electronic fund transfers, particularly when substantial sums are involved. It also demonstrates how social media can rapidly connect individuals seeking assistance with organisations or recipients who may otherwise be difficult to reach.
For Okpara, however, the immediate concern was recovering money she said belonged to other people and was intended for payments. Her successful refund brought an end to a stressful episode that began with a simple transfer error and ended after her appeal reached the organisation connected to the receiving account.
