An evangelist and a prophetess have been sentenced to a combined jail term of 11 years by the Adentan Circuit Court for stealing GHC265,000 from a retired lecturer’s account.
The 33-year-old evangelist, Samuel Kwesi Tsogbe, received a sentence of six years imprisonment, while the 63-year-old prophetess, Esther Christ, was sentenced to five years.
Tsogbe and Esther, who were self-ordained pastors of Cornerstone Ministry International, pleaded guilty to the charge of stealing.
The accused individuals traveled from Kpando to Accra with the purpose of offering prayers to the bedridden lecturer. However, during their stay at the lecturer’s house, they siphoned the money from his account.
After stealing the funds, Tsogbe and Esther opened an account at another bank and transferred the stolen money into it. They also dismissed the 72-year-old lecturer’s housekeeper, whom they claimed was the cause of the victim’s predicament.
Police investigations revealed that the accused persons had purchased a tipper truck and a Hyundai Might 2 vehicle, as well as rented a shop in the Oti Region.
During the court proceedings, Tsogbe expressed remorse and asked for forgiveness, stating that he did not anticipate the consequences of his actions. Similarly, Esther informed the court that she was a foreigner who had come to Ghana through another prophet and apologized for her actions.
Presided over by Mrs. Sedinam Awo Balokah, the court convicted the accused individuals based on their own pleas. The judge described their conduct as “unpalatable” and expressed concern about the exploitation of vulnerable individuals using spirituality. As a result, the court imposed a deterrent sentence and ordered the seizure of items purchased by the accused persons. Additionally, Tsogbe’s account was frozen to prevent any further withdrawals.
The prosecution, led by Chief Inspector Maxwell Lanyo, explained that the complainant, Margaret Dzandu, is a teacher residing in Kpando and is the niece of the victim, a retiree living in Danfa. Tsogbe and Esther, self-ordained pastors of Cornerstone Ministry International in Kpando, convinced the complainant that they had a revelation about her uncle’s predicament and convinced her to send them to pray for him.
The accused individuals occupied the victim’s home, expelled his housekeeper, and brought in a new house help from Kpando. Tsogbe and Esther stayed with the victim for five months. On May 4, 2022, they accompanied the victim to NIB bank, where they withdrew GHC200,000 from his account. They also managed to steal the victim’s National Investment Bank (NIB) ATM card and chequebook.
Starting from September 22, 2022, Tsogbe and Esther began transferring money from the victim’s NIB account to Tsogbe’s account until June 2, 2023. When the complainant visited the victim in June 2023 and discovered the missing ATM card and chequebook, she conducted a search but couldn’t find them in the house. Preliminary investigations revealed that the accused individuals had stolen the ATM card and chequebook.
The complainant reported the matter to the police in Kpando, who provided her with an extract to submit to the police in Ayi Mensah. Subsequently, the accused individuals were arrested, and they admitted to stealing the victim’s ATM card and chequebook, which were recovered from them.
