He also accused the cleric of using subtle blackmail and threat to cow him.
A young realtor, David Timilehin, has petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), over an alleged N65.5 million fraud.
Timilehin accused Prophet Marcus Tibetan of the Celestial Church of Christ and Elizabeth Akintonde, wife of Colonel Daniel Akintonde (retd.), a former military administrator of Ogun State, of defrauding him.
Temilehin who claimed to have paid N65.5 million to Tibetan in a failed land deal, also cried out over an alleged threat to his life by the popular Lagos cleric.
SaharaReporters had reported that Tibetan played the role of a middleman between the former first lady of Ogun State, Omolara Akintonde, and Timilehin, his estranged church member; who wanted to buy land from Akintonde.
Timilehin claimed he sent N65.5 million to Prophet Tibetan based on trust that he would deliver the said amount to Mrs. Akintonde, which was the cost of the land in question.
But the deal hit a brick wall when he found out that the land Akintonde wanted to sell was not what they had agreed on. He also discovered the land in question was not meant for private use. He then requested a refund of the money, saying he was no longer interested in the deal.
While speaking with SaharaReporters, Tibetan did not deny collecting money from Timilehin. He, however, claimed that the money had been paid to Akintonde.
On the other hand, Akintonde denied having anything to do with Timilehin, saying Timilehin should ask Tibetan for his money.
However, Timilehin through his lawyer, Ayo Durojaye and Co. in a petition to the EFCC demanded the agency’s intervention, investigation and the recovery of the sum of sixty-five million, five hundred and fifty thousand naira (N65,550,000.00), and possible prosecution of the duo.
The petition partly read, "We are solicitors to Mr. David Timilehin on whose instruction that we write this petition to you for your intervention, investigation and the recovery of the sum of Sixty-Five Million Five Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira (N65,550,000.00), and possibly persecute the criminal acts of the duo mentioned above.
"The above-mentioned name Prophet Marcus Korodele Oluwatosin and Mrs. Elizabeth Omolara Akitonde colluded with each other to defraud our client by obtaining the sum of Sixty Five Million Five Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira (N65,550,000.00) under false pretense and the insinuation that they have 30) plots of land (5 acres of land) at Ketu-Epe, Lagos State. The location which they described to our client to be beside Dangote Refinery, Ibeju-Lekki, Lekki.
"Our client Mr. David Timilehin has been like an 'adopted son' to Prophet Marcus Tibetan whom our client sees as his Prophet, Godfather and Confidant to the extent that he takes Tibetan's words hook, line and sinker hence the trust he placed on the Prophet Tibetan.”
"Prophet Tibetan was the one that introduced Madam Elizabeth Omolara Akitonde to our client that she has some acres of land to sell and our client agreed to buy some acres, since his Godfather and Prophet has assured him that he will not have any problem with regards to the purchase of the land," the statement added.
Temilehin told SaharaReporters that the EFCC had initiated actions to recover the money from the duo, adding that there were indications that the cleric and Akintonde had fled the country.
"Since I embarked on the move to get a refund, Prophet Tibetan has subjected me to emotional and spiritual blackmail while also threatening his life.
"Besides, both the prophet and Akintonde have blocked my contact and dared me to take whatever action I wanted to take.
“I keep telling them that I am too young for what they are making me pass through. It’s like they want to kill me before my time. I want to tell Nigerians that if I die, they should hold Prophet Tibetan responsible because it's my entire life that they want to confiscate,” Timilehin said.
Lamenting further, Timilehin said, “The regard I have for him (Prophet Tibetan) is no more. I took him as a spiritual father. But he has betrayed that trust.”
Timilehin alleged that the duo of Tibetan and Akintonde may have been defrauding people before now.
“Where I began to suspect is that the woman was asked by Prophet Tibetan to move away from her office accommodation. They are using the land as bait but in reality, the land was allocated for the purpose of building a refinery by the Lagos State government to Akintonde,” Timilehin said.
He also accused the cleric of using subtle blackmail and threat to cow him.
“My life is no longer safe. Their intention is to exterminate me after I paid the money because, on a normal day, I could not have paid such an amount without due process. It was like I was hypnotised by the prophet.
“Now that I have come to my senses, they are not comfortable. That is why Prophet Tibetan has been doing everything to buy time hoping that something bad will happen to me,” he said.