HICC lead pastor denies claims of fraud, demands evidence

Pastor Bolaji Idowu, the Lead Pastor of Harvesters International Christian Center (HICC), has cleared the air on the real estate fraud and money laundering allegations against him that have become widespread in the media.

Pastor Idowu told his congregation on Wednesday morning that he was not guilty of all the allegations against him and urged anyone with contrary evidence to produce it.

“There are a lot of news about me on social media. I just want to make some facts clear. I heard that I was involved in real estate.”
“I do not have any property in Nigeria. Anyone that has any contrary evidence can produce it. The only property I have in Nigeria is the one that my late parents bequeathed to me,” said Pastor Idowu.

The pastor added that he does not engage in the sale of properties and has never received billions in his account, as people have claimed on social media.

“Secondly, I do not sell or buy properties. I am not in that business. Someone said I received billions in my account. My accounts are public accounts. You can go and check if I ever received billions in my account because I did not. There have been a lot of things going on in the press, but this is not the forum to address it.”

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On Tuesday, operatives of the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID) detained Pastor Idowu in Abuja over allegations of real estate fraud and money laundering.

Social media went agog following the news of his arrest. The pastor, who is also known for hosting the Next Level Morning Prayers on YouTube, was accused of being a fraud.

When the news of his arrest made rounds in the media, a source in the FCID told Sahara Reporters that the case emanated from one of his pastors who duped several people in a real estate scheme and that several billions of naira were traced first to Pastor Bolaji’s church account and later to his personal account.

His church, which was founded in 2013, has spread beyond the shores of Nigeria and has branches in the United States of America and the United Kingdom.