The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested the General Overseer of Faith On The Rock Ministry International, Apostle Theophilus Oloche Ebonyi, for defrauding his church members and other Nigerians using fake grants from the Ford Foundation to the tune of N1,319,040,274.31.
EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, said in a statement that Ebonyi was arrested for defrauding his victims, comprising non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and individuals by advertising an intervention project through his NGO (Theobarth Global Foundation), claiming that the Ford Foundation was offering a grant of $20,000,000.000 to assist the less-privileged in the society.
Ebonyi was said to be reaching his subscribers on some social media platforms to market his spurious grant from Ford Foundation.
The statement added that Ebonyi “allegedly beguiled his victims to subscribe as beneficiaries of the phony grant by asking them to pay for registration forms and clusters.
“Each subscriber was made to pay N1,800,000. Through this arrangement, Ebonyi allegedly raked in N1,391,040, 274.31. His subscribers are innocent and unsuspecting Nigerians and NGOs across the country.”
Investigations by the EFCC showed that Ford Foundation had no arrangement, grant, relationship or business with Ebonyi. The Foundation pointedly disclaimed him and his NGO, stressing that it had no link whatsoever with them.
The EFCC has also traced five properties he acquired as proceeds of his criminal dealings.
The anti-graft agency added that the suspect would be charged to court as soon as investigations were concluded.