Crime
TB Joshua’s Ex-Disciple Reveals Eight-Year Hiding Amidst BBC Investigation
A former follower of the late Prophet Temitope Balogun Joshua, commonly known as TB Joshua, named Paul Agomoh, has revealed that he had to go into hiding for nearly eight years after his initial attempt to expose the activities of the late presiding Pastor of the Synagogue Church of All Nations.
Agomoh shared this information with journalists following a screening of a 150-minute-long investigative report conducted by BBC Africa Eye titled “Disciples: The Cult of TB Joshua.” The event, which took place at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja on Monday evening, featured testimonies from former followers and church workers accusing the late prophet of manipulation and physical abuse.
While mentioning that he was the first Prophet under the SCOAN, Agomoh mentioned that he was pursued across Cotonou, Lagos, and Ghana by loyalists of Prophet TB Joshua, who believed that his revelations were blasphemous against the prophet.
“I was the first prophet of the Synagogue church, and I spent more than a decade in the Synagogue between 1995 and 2006. And I just want to thank the BBC. This is a journey I started in 2009. I released a video with Sister Bisola, ‘The Deception of the Age’. When I left there, the incident that led to my leaving is not a story I can finish here. It is a terrible experience. I decided to leave. When I left, I could not sleep, I could not rest. The burden was so much on me. I had to move out with the help of some pastors in ministry, and my friends.
“We brought this out, but a lot of people said ‘Agomoh has come, he is blaspheming against our man of God’. They started chasing me everywhere. For a good eight years, I laid low, not doing any ministerial job, not doing any public jobs. I laid low, just with the help of a few pastors. About three years ago, was when I started coming out gradually. I was pursued everywhere, from here to Cotonou, you know these are the nearest places you can run to, from Cotonou to Ghana, back to Lagos, I was running,” he said.
The investigation report, according to Peter Ogunmuyiwa, the Archbishop of the African Church in Abuja, was not an indictment against the church but rather against the late Pastor TB Joshua. He pointed out that Joshua could not be considered a criminal because no court had brought charges against him prior to his death.
“It is not an indictment on the church, it is an indictment on who is accused. And it is quite unfortunate that he is not alive to defend himself. All this would have been very good if he was still alive. And when he was alive, what moves were taken to confront these issues and get him convicted? So, he is a dead person now, he is gone, and it is not for us to say he died as a criminal, because no state law convicted him while he was alive.”
Ogunmuyiwa added that while such reports saddened bodies like the Christian Association of Nigeria, of which he was a member, the body did not have legislative powers or a law that covered CAN, to deal with such persons or church. He however called on the government to make laws to regulate churches and license seminaries to tutor pastors.
“I also believe that, if possible, let there be legislation to regulate. So that people will not just be behaving anyhow. You can’t just come out today and say you are a Pastor, which institution, which seminary, which college of theology did you go to before you say you’re a Pastor? And then the government should find a way of registering and then licensing those schools to regulate them, just like we have the university commission. I think it is high time they introduced that into religious bodies also so that we will be getting ministers that are well trained, and that are recognised by the state,” he said.
A South African court has sentenced opposition leader Julius Malema to five years in prison following his conviction for illegal possession and public discharge of a firearm.
Malema, who leads the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), was found guilty on multiple counts linked to a 2018 incident during the party’s fifth anniversary celebration in the Eastern Cape.
At the event, he was captured in a widely circulated video firing a semi-automatic rifle into the air.
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According to court proceedings, Malema argued that the act was merely celebratory.
However, the court rejected his defence, ruling that the action was not spontaneous but deliberate.
The presiding magistrate described the incident as premeditated and emphasized that Malema’s position as a prominent political figure placed a higher burden of responsibility on him.
The charges against him included unlawful possession of a firearm, discharging a weapon in public, and reckless endangerment.
The court held that such actions posed a serious threat to public safety and could not be excused under any circumstances.
Despite the five-year sentence, Malema was granted leave to appeal, meaning he will not be taken into custody immediately.
He walked free from the courtroom and was greeted by hundreds of supporters who had gathered outside.
Addressing the crowd, Malema alleged that the ruling was politically motivated, claiming that certain forces were attempting to silence him.
His supporters responded with chants and songs, showing continued loyalty to the outspoken politician.
Malema, a former youth leader of the African National Congress (ANC), was expelled after a fallout with former President Jacob Zuma.
He later founded the EFF, which has since grown into one of South Africa’s most influential opposition parties.
Reacting to the development, ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula suggested that the case reflected broader political tensions.
However, lobby group AfriForum, which initiated the case after the video surfaced, insisted the prosecution was based strictly on enforcing the law.
A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, has issued a warrant of arrest against former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Farouq, and a Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Bashir Nura Alkali, over their alleged involvement in a multi-million naira fraud case.
The arrest order was issued on Thursday, April 16, 2026, by Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie of the FCT High Court after the two defendants failed to appear in court for their scheduled arraignment.
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The duo, alongside a third defendant, Sani Nafiu Mohammed, are facing a 21-count charge filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The charges border on alleged criminal breach of trust, abuse of office, fraudulent contract awards, and the diversion of public funds totaling $1.3 million and N746,574,303.
At Thursday’s proceedings, only Mohammed was present in court.
According to the EFCC, the alleged offences occurred between May 2021 and September 2022 in Abuja.
The anti-graft agency accused Farouq and Alkali of misappropriating funds meant to be refunded to the ministry by a private firm, Visual ICT Limited.
The money was reportedly linked to excess payments under the National Social Safety Net Coordinating Office (NASSCO) for the validation of Rapid Response Register beneficiaries.
The prosecution counsel, Rotimi Jacobs, told the court that although the charges were filed on December 15, 2025, the two defendants could not initially be served.
He added that despite assurances from their legal representatives, they failed to present themselves in court.
Jacobs further revealed that Farouq had earlier requested the release of her passport for a medical trip to Saudi Arabia in 2024 but has yet to return it or provide any medical report to justify her absence.
“My lord, since that passport was released to her, she has not returned it to the Commission, and no medical report has been submitted,” Jacobs stated, questioning the validity of the health claims presented by her counsel.
Counsel to the first defendant, Abdul Ibrahim, attributed his client’s absence to ill health and attempted to tender an affidavit to that effect, but the court rejected the application.
The EFCC also sought to amend an earlier ex-parte motion to focus on the first and second defendants and requested a bench warrant to compel their appearance.
The prosecution supported its request with an affidavit stating that both defendants had been granted administrative bail but failed to report back.
In response, the defence counsel pleaded with the court to grant a six-week extension to produce Farouq in court.
However, in his ruling, Justice Onwuegbuzie granted the EFCC’s application and issued a warrant for the arrest of the two defendants.
The case was subsequently adjourned to May 18, 2026, for arraignment and commencement of trial.
Pandemonium broke out at a private hospital in Ikotun, Lagos, after a woman accused medical staff of withholding one of her twins following childbirth.
The incident, which has since gone viral on social media, captured the emotional moment the woman—identified as 28-year-old Blessing Isioma David—stormed the hospital premises while clutching a newborn and demanding answers over the whereabouts of her second baby.
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In the video, the distraught mother is heard shouting, “Where is my baby? I did not come here to lose my child,” drawing attention from other patients and passersby.
Those who accompanied her also joined in the confrontation, calling on authorities to arrest the hospital staff over suspected foul play.
According to reports, the woman had earlier undergone an obstetric scan in March 2026, which indicated a twin pregnancy.
The scan reportedly showed two foetuses with normal heart activity, further fueling her insistence that she delivered two babies.
However, the hospital, identified as Tip-Top Solution Hospital, has denied the allegation.
The Medical Director, Dr. Sunday Babajide, maintained that only one baby was delivered, attributing the confusion to an error in the initial scan.
He explained that the patient’s husband was present during the delivery and witnessed the birth of only one child, adding that the mother was conscious throughout the procedure.
Babajide noted that scans done at certain stages of pregnancy could sometimes produce inaccurate results, especially if not confirmed with follow-up examinations.
“The mistake was that we didn’t insist on another scan to verify the result,” he admitted, while dismissing claims of baby trafficking or misconduct.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Police Force in Lagos has confirmed that it has commenced an investigation into the matter.
Police spokesperson, SP Abimbola Adebisi, said the Command is working with relevant medical authorities to determine the truth behind the conflicting claims.
She added that the Area Commander in charge of the district is personally overseeing the case, assuring the public that findings will be made known once investigations are concluded.
Residents have been urged to remain calm as authorities work to unravel the circumstances surrounding the incident, which has continued to generate heated reactions online.
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