Oloruntele revealed this in an interview with Yoruba Gidi TV.
A former usher with the Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries International (MFM), Caleb Oloruntele has narrated how the church founder, Daniel Olukoya allegedly ordered the police to shoot him.
Oloruntele revealed this in an interview with Yoruba Gidi TV.
According to him, Olukoya wanted him dead because he refused to give false testimony against a pastor he identified as Femi Agboola.
The former usher said he was prosecuted in 2008 without any concrete evidence to prove the allegation made against him.
He said, “I joined the church to solve my life issues. But I didn’t know the church would complicate my life. Those who did not understand what really happened would be saying different things. Assuming I have died inside the prison, people would think Olukoya’s allegation of murder against me is true.
“I fear the police. The police know the criminals but because of corruption they always hide the truth. We went to Olukoya to beg him. We prostrated before him. He pushed us away. And he told the police that they did not do well. He asked the police why they did not shoot us.
“My parents were Muslims. I converted to Christianity.
“All my documents that they burnt at the church headquarters, if I had known, I would have carried them to my house.
“When the police came to the church, they said the information they got in their office was not what they met. The police asked me, ‘Why did your boss give you an instruction and you refused to carry it out?’
“The police said if God delivered me out of the problem, next time my boss gave me an instruction, I would carry it out.
“I did not understand what they were saying then. It means Olukoya wanted me to lie against Femi Agboola but I refused to do so because the man did not do anything to me. So why would I lie against him?
“The torture I received while in detention dislocated my hand and one of my ears is bad. I have been left with ‘a half-body’ (with a physical disability) because of Olukoya. When we were being taken to prison in the car, the police said, ‘Your pastor is a wicked person.’ He said we should take you to the site (prison) to kill you.’
“As we got to the gate of the site, I saw a lot of security operatives telling us ‘rest in peace’. There was no evidence against me. I did not steal, I did not do anything, I have never engaged in any crime.”
He continued: “If you check the newspapers, you would see the lies there (about our alleged armed robbery). In those reports, they did not allow us to state our side of the story. Only the church management spoke.
“There was no time that someone did not die inside that prison and that is why it is called ‘mortuary prison’. I was prosecuted on January 25, 2008.”
However, efforts made by SaharaReporters to speak with the spokesman for the MFM, Mr Collins Edomaruse failed.
SaharaReporters had earlier reported how Pastor Femi Jimoh also accused the church of being behind his incarceration for nine years over alleged armed robbery.
He said he was beaten and handcuffed while a Divisional Police Officer shot him in the leg.
According to him, his mother and sister went to beg Olukoya on his behalf but he told them that he would be released only if he pleaded guilty in court.
He said; "If it is by telling lies, they should look for someone that can tell lies because MFM believes that if anybody speaks on radio and television, he will be disregarded. My words are not to be disregarded. Let them hear me very well. If they want to call the police or a lawyer, I'm ready. My words cannot be disregarded because I know them to be unforgiven and I can swear to that.”
#RevolutionNow convener Omoyele Sowore on Thursday called on the Nigeria Police Force to immediately arrest and prosecute Olukoya for allegedly influencing the incarceration of Femi Jimoh for nine years without trial.
The former African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate, in a series of posts on his social media handle, said the alleged atrocities committed by the MFM church leadership, the collusion between the church leadership and the police and others working with them was enough reason to set up a national police abuse commission of inquiry, such that all the people mentioned in the video would be brought to justice.