[size=14pt]Fake Catholic priest nabbed in Anambra[/size]
News Tuesday, November 16, 2010


By Vincent Ujumadu

AWKA-A FAKE Catholic priest, who for years, had been deceiving unsuspecting members of the public in parts of Imo and Anambra states had been caught by the long arms of the law.




http://odili.net/news/source/2010/nov/16/319.html

The suspect, Solomon Ohakim, who was said to be parading himself as a Monsignor, next to a Bishop in the Catholic Church, was caught at Okpoko, a suburb in Onitsha, where he had come to perform family cleansing for some people who thought he was a genuine Reverend Father.

The Trinitas Newspaper, an official organ of Onitsha Catholic Archdiocese, in its November, 2010 edition, reported that the fake priest had been operating since 2006 and, indeed, had a ministry at Orlu area of Imo State where the people mistook him for an ordained Reverend Father.

According to the report, Ohakim had in 2006, convinced some people at Okpoko that a girl was buried alive in a compound by their ancestors and that it was the reason the village had not witnessed progress.

It was gathered that after collecting a huge sum of money from the villagers to appease the gods, nothing was achieved and nobody heard about him until recently when another family brought him to the area for another cleansing.

The report said: "This time around, he was invited to Okpoko by a widow for the burial of her husband. However, nemesis caught up with him when he decided to inform the parish priest of St. Patrick's Catholic Church, Odekpe, Rev Fr David Ozoemena, that he was coming for a burial ceremony in the parish.

"He had claimed that he was coming from St Eugene's Parish, Aba, and pleaded with Fr Ozoemena to prepare a place for him to stay.

"The story, however, took another dimension when Fr. Ozoemena made enquiries in Aba only to be informed that there was no such priest in the whole of Aba Diocese.

"Though he still waited for his August visitor, Ohakim eventually failed to show up at the parish, but was seen at the venue of the funeral ceremony at night adorning the full regalia of a Catholic priest and was performing with his gospel band. He later disappeared the same night before the parish priest could arrive the scene.

"When Fr Ozoemena informed the parishioners that Ohakim is not a priest, there was uproar in the area. However, the people devised another means of attracting him to the area by telling him that a family paid N50,000 for him to perform a family cleansing for them.

"He fell into the trap and was subsequently arrested and taken to Atani police station on his arrival."

He was eventually taken to the Criminal Investigation Department, CID, Awka, and it was gathered that he had already been charged to court for impersonation.

During interrogation, Ohakim denied being a priest, but claimed that he runs a church which goes by the name, Glorious Church at Ogberuru in Orlu local government area of Imo State.

On why he answered a Monsignor and uses Catholic materials, including the Rosary and the material for the Holy Communion, the fake priest said such materials were in the market for anybody to buy.