Pastor Ezekiel Stopped From Regaining His 16 Bank Accounts

The televangelist is being investigated for at least 14 offences...

admin admin
May 15, 2023 - 10:14 Updated: May 15, 2023 - 10:15
0
Pastor Ezekiel Stopped From Regaining His 16 Bank Accounts
Pastor Ezekiel Odero (in white robe) in the dock on April 28, 2023. /NATION BREAKING NEWS

New Life International Church Pastor Ezekiel Odero on Monday, May 15 lost out again after the Mombasa High Court refused to unfreeze his 16 bank accounts under investigation.

The televangelist is being investigated for at least 14 offences that include; murder, aiding suicide, abduction, radicalisation, genocide, crimes against humanity, child cruelty, fraud and money laundering.

High Court Judge Olga Sewe in the ruling termed Pastor Ezekiel's applications as misconceived and thus refrained from commenting on the correctness and legality of the orders issued by Milimani Magistrate Court in Nairobi.

Pastor Ezekiel carrying a Bible after being arrested in Mombasa on April 27, 2023. /TWITTER

Judge Sewe also declined an application in which the pastor was seeking to have his TV station get back on the air.

The judge as a result advised Pastor Ezekiel and his lawyers to exhaust all the legal channels with Communication Authority before returning to the court.

Pastor Ezekiel through his lawyer Danstan Omari had previously moved to court to block the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) from accessing the bank accounts with the intention of freezing them.

“In the interim and pending the hearing and determination of this application, this honourable court be pleased to issue a conservatory order temporarily restraining the respondents from taking adverse action against Odero or New Life Prayer Center and Church including the freezing of the church accounts in two local banks," the court papers read in part.

The DCI moved to court to request permission to access the bank accounts and carry out investigations on money laundering claims and were allowed to scrutinise them following a ruling that was delivered by Milimani Chief Magistrate Court.

Chief Inspector Martin Munene requested the court to probe the accounts, asserting that large sums of money suspected to be proceeds of illegal cash had been transferred into the accounts from victims who were allegedly radicalized to sell their properties.

The court at the same time issued an order freezing Pastor Ezekiel's bank accounts for 30 days.

"It is necessary and desirable to issue the applicant with a warrant to investigate books of bank and mobile money services accounts so as to authorize the officer to have access to books relating to several account numbers," the DCI told the court.

The detectives specifically sought orders to inspect, obtain information and demand to be supplied with certified copies of the account opening documents, bank account statements, signatories of the accounts, and RTGS (swift) for the period between January 14, 2017, to April 30, 2023.

They also requested to be granted access to any other relevant document that may aid them in completing investigations on a suspected case of money laundering, further claiming that the scrutiny of the bank accounts may also reveal the link between Pastor Ezekiel and Paul Mackenzie.

Side-by-side image of Pastor Ezekiel Odero and Paul Mackenzie. /VIRALTEAKE

Tags: