Posted by By EMMA AMAIZE, Benin on
DURING the Warri crisis which was one of the most horrific and traumatic experience that the people in that part of Delta State went through between 1998 and early 2004, the church was virtually the only safe place for most persons..
*Cart N20m away
*Superior evangelist hides inside ceiling
*Pastor opens eyes while praying to find gun in his mouth
DURING the Warri crisis which was one of the most horrific and traumatic experience that the people in that part of Delta State went through between 1998 and early 2004, the church was virtually the only safe place for most persons, whether they were Itsekiri, Ijaw or Urhobo, to seek refuge from the blood-thirsty warriors and their weapons of death. The Word of Life Bible Church, presided over by Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, was one of such temporary abodes. But something strange is happening today. The house of God which was a safe haven in the time of crisis is now, which is a 'time of peace'', a dangerous place it is not just Warri but the neighbouring Effurun.
AT the last count, last Wednesday, no fewer than 30 churches were said to have been raided by "sons of the devil" in both Warri and Effurun in the past 60 days. That is one church in every two days. The sacredness of the church means nothing to the marauders who not only fire gunshots inside the hallowed chambers but tie up the security guards in most of the churches they have so far raided, ransacked the offices, broke the safes open and stole "God's money". An estimated N20 million has been lost to the bandits in the operations. To quench their thirst probably, they usually help themselves to the drinks and biscuits kept for Holy Communion.
At a church on Jakpa Road, Effurun, the pastor of church with his eyes closed and mouth open in a deep worship mood, suddenly felt a cold iron in his mouth and on opening his eyes, he saw a gang of armed robbers around him with the nozzle of a gun inside his mouth, telling him not to shout and surrender all the offerings that he collected that day or he would be dispatched to the land beyond in the quiet way he was praying to God Almighty.
Investigation by Sunday Vanguard showed that the bandits shifted their nefarious activities to the churches because the banks have recruited more policemen who give them enough battle. It is their belief that most of the churches have money too and since they do not carry arms in the house of God, it was uncalled for risking their lives to go for the kill in the banks with all round security when they could effortlessly grab something substantial from the churches.When they started with one or two churches two months ago, it was thought the attack was just a happenstance but it has grown into a full-blooded monster.
Both the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) in the state are worried by the development and several meetings have been held in the past few days to arrest the latest "invention" from the pit of hell. As usual, Sunday Vanguard spoke to the men of God themselves on the invasion and what they thought of it. It is straight from the horses' mouth.
How they ransacked Soul Harvesters - Rev Usifo
IF the night guards at the Estate Baptist Church were given a rough treatment by the bandits, what they did to their counterparts at the Soul Harvesters Church, Ugborikoko five days earlier, precisely, April 3 was barbaric. They tied the five or so security guards with rope like goats meant for slaughter for Christmas and for next 35 minutes or thereabout, they took time to search the various offices and went away with almost N800,000 found in the Accounts Section. Sunday Vanguard learnt that the money was supposed to have been removed that Sunday by the church bankers. In fact, the officials of the bank were contacted and a definite instruction left by some leaders of the bank to deposit the money in the bank but somehow, the bank said it would not be able to come to pick up the money that Sunday only for robbers to storm the church.
Surveillance mission: Investigation showed that the bandits carry out surveillance on the church they want to rob before they carry out their operation. For instance, on April 3, some ushers at the Soul Harvesters Church noticed the presence of some suspicious characters during the service that morning and they reported their observation to some leaders of the church. But because nobody gave thought to a normal human being coming to rob a church, the matter was dismissed with a wave of the hand only for the bandits to return in the night. But there is a suspicion that the robbers had an insider in the church who leaked to them the information that the money that was supposed to be taken to the bank that day, was still in the Accounts office.
Same pattern of tying security guards: The general overseer of the Soul Harvesters, Reverend E.O. Onofurho, was rushing out for an engagement when Sunday Vanguard visited his ministry last Tuesday. He, however, mandated the assistant general overseer, Reverend Kenneth Usifo, to speak to us. According to him: "On the third of this month, after service that Sunday, we all went home as usual and at about 2.00 am, the robbers came and went straight to the security post and they could not find anybody. So they spread themselves around the premises and in the process of going round the premises, they met one of the guards on his beat and quickly overpowered him. They met a second one and overpowered him also.
The third guard who sighted the struggle was trying to escape out of the premises when he ran into another set of robbers who cornered and subdued him. In fact, all six of our security guards were rounded up and tied together, legs and hands. The robbers who came to invade our church were very many with guns. After succeeding in capturing all the guards, they proceeded to forcefully remove all the iron protectors at different points from where they gained entrance into the accounts, administration and general overseer''s offices, looted cash valued at more than N800,000 in all.
Suspicion everywhere: "You know people came to church and in the process, the evil ones among them study everywhere. It is like you people now. I am suspicious of people now. If not that you have been introduced to me, I would not speak to you. The place was thoroughly vandalized."
Security guards untie rope with teeth: It was the church member who came early in the morning that saw all the guards sitting dejected. It was him they told their story and he called the General Overseer who, in turn, sent us text messages. According to him, the security guards had to wriggle themselves with great difficulties and pains after the robbers left.
How they raided Estate Baptist Church -- Ufua
THE minister-in-charge and chaplain of Estate Baptist Church, Delta Development Property Authority (DDPA) Housing Estate, Ugborikoko, Effurun/Warri, Reverend Emmanuel Ufua, narrated how robbers ransacked his church, Friday, April 8 to Sunday Vanguard in his office. "On Friday night, that is April 8 at about 1.00 am, four armed men visited the church. The security men on duty thought they came for all night vigil. But anyway that day was not for vigil. So they asked, ‘what are you doing there' and immediately, the robbers brought out their guns and proceeded to tie the security guards up with wire cables. Their hands and legs were tied behind them. Thereafter they started their operation which lasted till about 1.50am", he disclosed.
They emptied our welfare box: They came with a big cutter with which they cut open all the big padlocks on the caravan and my office. They virtually turned everywhere upside down. They opened the church‘s welfare box and emptied it. We do not normally open the box until the end of each month. So I cannot say the amount stolen from there. My office lost more than N34,000 to the thieves.
Even the wall clock in my office was brought down while my
library was scattered. Of course, my desk and drawers were ravaged. All my documents and envelopes containing cash were opened and the envelopes littered everywhere. In the past two months, I know that more than 30 churches have been invaded in this town..
It's a shocking development: This new trend of robbers attacking the house of God to me is very strange. For the past years that I have been a pastor, both in this town and elsewhere, the house of God used to be the place people run to for safety. Even during the Warri crisis, it is the churches people ran to. Now, the churches are no longer a safe haven. I do not know what to say. Even in those days, I remember when robbers came to remove ceiling fans from a church, after about a week or so , they returned the fans.
The Celestial Church invasion -- Superior Evang Hunye
THE coordinator of the Celestial Church in Delta and Bayelsa
states, Superior Evangelist Joseph Kayode Hunye, spoke to Sunday Vanguard on the attack on the headquarters of the Celestial Church of Christ, Ajamogha. He said: The time was around 2.30 am, I had come out of my house to ease myself, then I saw two boys inside the church premises without our usual white garment. I was surprised and wondered who they were because our Effurun centre was robbed not quite long ago and they made away with more than N3million. So the thought came straight to my mind that these miscreants, having succeeded at a small branch, would like to also visit the Warri headquarters. And myself, am not very strong here.
I just had an accident recently. You can see the car outside there, I do not have the strength to withstand any further battering. I did not know that it was robbers I was seeing right in front of me there. So I went into the bathroom to ease myself. The next thing I heard was ‘gbooa'. Everywhere was in darkness. There was light before. When I looked through the bathroom window, I saw other surrounding places still have light, then I heard ‘gbooa' again. They broke open the door of one of my prophets rooms and I heard shouting and begging and crying.
"Come down or we pieces you", robbers order man of God: He repeated that this guy dey on top ceiling and then started ordering me, "come down now ooo, come down now oo, if you no come down, we go pieces you if we catch you." When I saw them, they were so many, some bare-faced while others covered their faces with black clothes. They were all carrying machine guns. They use the bullets to wrap all their bodies, about four of them like that. They were still ordering me to come down when one of them just started bursting the ceiling from different direction. They now use chairs , table and other items to climb so as to see inside the ceiling properly. They came with a very big, bright shinning torch light with which they viewed the whole ceiling.
Nozzle of the gun
So I still kept quiet where I was lying down in fear until the torch-light caught my eyes. Before I knew what was happening, they burst open the spot of the ceiling where I was and forcefully brought me down (long laughter).
They took all the wines in my fridge. Before they brought me down, they first showed me the nozzle of the gun using the torch light, saying they would blow me up now. So I started begging and shouting too like my prophet (laughter). The robbers now asked me: "Why did you climb the ceiling?" I replied: "I beg una, na fear make me carry my body take enter ceiling.
I beg una, na fear cause am". They said ‘okay, if you co-operate, we nor go do you anything'. So I quickly told them I will cooperate. Mr. Journalist, that is the way everything started. So they now turned the whole house inside out and swept us to the last kobo in the house. They opened my fridge and took all the wines and even my bournvita and sugar (laughter). After this, they now asked me, "where the Bayelsa and Delta money?". By now they have pressed the nozzle of their guns on my stomach, saying "if you no tell us we go bring everything wey dey this belle out." So I told them that it is in the office and cannot go there this night because it is far off.
From what is recorded on book, they made away with close to N423,000. This is outside the money that is not on record. You can see my accidented Jeep there. Individuals, churches and even corporate bodies have been coming to sympathize with me. They bring money to assist me in repairing the car. I have not bothered to count some of this money in envelopes, I only kept them in one place. They were carted away by the robbers also. So plus or minus, the robbers made away with a colossal sum. Not just what was recorded in our books as given to the Police.
Robbers fight over who handles loot: One of them now replied that "Pastor no dey lie, see your office there". And truthfully my office is in the church premises with me there, laughter, laughter, laughter. So we went to the office and they carried the money. Right there, they started fighting amongst themselves with each one insisting on holding the loot. I just stood where they positioned me looking at them for about 30 minutes of their fighting.
‘They forced me to pray for them' Thereafter, one amongst them whom I suspect is their leader now came to me with an iron rod with very sharp pointed at my mouth and told me straight away that if they fight against themselves again before they leave the church, he will kill me. He said I was the one invoking this fight amongst them. I now promised that they would not fight again...I even prayed that they should get home successfully with their loots, (laughter, more laughter). During their fight, they were accusing each other: "Give me the money, na your grand papa get am? Give me". This was amidst exchange of blows and slaps. The oga then took the money and held it. In the house, apart from money, they also took my wife's jewellery. The robbers were here till 5.00 am, they took my two handsets and three others belonging to other church members. In fact, these boys were so crafty that while one set was robbing upstairs, another was robbing downstairs. They invaded all these nearby houses. They broke the head of one man, tied all the people in some of these buildings and stole as much as they could lay their hands on. Some were busy stealing while others mounted sentry.
Armed robbers now believe there is big money in the church. Some men of God told Sunday Vanguard that it was an indication that the world was coming to and end. But Hunye said: "Hmmm, na wa o. Before, if armed robbers go rob, dem come and pass through where a church dey, dem go make sign of the cross and pray to God for forgiveness and bow their heads, dem dey respect God but now, dem no even care whether this be spiritual church or not. Their belief now is that people go to churches to contribute huge amount of money for church development. So this money is what they are now targeting to steal and are stealing. This is how they went to Osubi to rob Prophet Dayo. They all wore pastors' robe to the church. So, you cannot really know whether some church members are robbers.
Why robbers do not fear the church again: The Reverend Usifo of the Soul Harvesters put it this way: "Somebody said this ugly trend shows that the churches are not playing their role in the society. Perhaps, it is another way God is pointing to us our failure. But the leaders are already addressing the issue. Christian leaders in this area are doing something about it already. It may not be a war against robbers, may be a prayer time in which case, these robbers will be called to book. We do not want to invoke fire on them. But you know Jesus Christ said we should love our enemies. You pray for your enemies to repent. Again, if we are to talk of the law of Moses, then it will be a tooth for a tooth but we are no longer in that era.
Hunye, however, said: "The robbers know that people in the churches do not carry guns; that their security is porous; that everything is taken for granted and that the people leave their lives in the hands of God Almighty, who is very merciful and cares more for the sinner to come to repentance. The robbers know that if they face the banks, it would be fire for fire and the church is not like that. I think that is why robbers now focus on churches. But this is unfortunate.
Celestial Church in disarray over invasion What are the Celestial authorities doing about the attack? The spiritual churches as a body have not done anything for now. Everybody is still running for his dear live. But CAN and PFN have started something. Ufua confirmed to Sunday Vanguard that the CAN and PFN were doing something about the development. His words: "The CAN and PFN are discussing the issue and would soon come out with a position. Everybody is concerned because the thing is affecting both the high and the low.