A Solar investigation unearths the lavish worlds of Britain’s loaded pastors together with plush mansions, a £120k celebration and worshippers thrust 1000’s of direct debit paperwork every week
THESE are the mega-rich messengers of God whose church buildings are raking in thousands and thousands from their worshippers in one of the poorest portions of Britain.
Pastors Matthew Ashimolowo and Alex Omokudu reside in sprawling seven-figure mansions whilst their massive congregations are informed at hand over cash continuously directly from their salaries.
In the meantime, the preachers lead products and services wherein it’s claimed other folks were cured of life-threatening diseases – a few of them at the spot.
The Solar discovered Omokudu continues to advertise movies comparable to one claiming a tender boy has been cured of most cancers whilst the pastor puts his fingers on him. His church has been warned through government about probably exploiting other folks with critical diseases.
We witnessed worshippers being informed "God desires you to present all of your cash to him" and warned about appearing "disobedience to God" sooner than being passed direct debit paperwork.
The pastors declare to proportion their wealth with those that want it however we will be able to divulge the monetary dealings that have noticed them achieve lavish existence maximum worshippers can handiest dream of.
Pastor Alex Omokudu claims to be "closely anointed with therapeutic powers from God" and his church takes greater than £1million a yr in donations from his trustworthy following.
Omokudu moved to the United Kingdom from Nigeria in 2002 and introduced Victorious Pentecostal Meeting (VPA) 3 years later.
Lately, the 53-year-old – who is known as Daddy through his flock – owns a lavish £2million nine-bedroom mansion in leafy Hornchurch, Essex.
The lavish gated mansion comprises 5 reception rooms, a swimming pool, a sauna and a 250ft lawn.
He additionally owns a 2d £600,000 assets a brief distance away.
Regardless of his sumptuous way of life, his web site states: "My wealth belongs to the folk, no matter I’ve I give out. Persons are struggling and wish assist."
In the meantime, worshippers are successfully leaned on to drain their wallet to 'the God of VPA'.
The principle church in Barking, East London, is attended through round 5,000 worshippers each and every week and lies inside some of the disadvantaged spaces in the United Kingdom.
VPA additionally operates in run-down portions of Birmingham, Manchester, Bradford and Luton.
Our reporter attended a provider at VPA's Barking church and joined 1000’s of other folks many times informed: "Give your cash to God to get forward of others".
The provider began with a lot of testimonies of other folks claiming to have skilled miracles after praying to 'the God of VPA' and requests from the ones in search of assist.
One teen about to sit down his A-level checks was once informed: "While you input that examination corridor, God will fill your head with the solutions".
The congregation was once then learn a passage from 2 Kings 4 wherein a girl unearths herself in debt and is informed to gather empty packing containers from her neighbours which God fills with oil to promote.
"Give your cash to God to get forward of others… give your cash to God to get forward of others" repeats the pastor.
A lot of identical words have been repeated as the quantity of the song grew slowly within the transformed place of job block.
The pastor added: "God desires you to present all of your cash to Him.. give all of your cash to Him.
"There’s no excuse to not give your cash to God… he sees any cash you could have coming. You can’t disguise cash from God.
"The church of VPA and Pastor Alex Omokudu will ship you prosperity."
Because the song constructed to a crescendo, direct debit paperwork emerged – and worshippers have been informed to return to the entrance and "pay your tithes".
However whilst vowing to serve the congregation who quit £1m-a-year, Omokudu additionally for my part takes an annual £102,000 in hire for the church they worship in.
Alex Omokudu has in the past been warned through government for announces that includes claims over miracle therapeutic.
Pictures from VPA's Barking church presentations the mansion-dwelling pastor many times telling his worshippers they’ve been cured sooner than the congregation's eyes.
In a single case filmed remaining yr, he’s introduced with an eight-year-old boy whose mom stated he was once affected by a tumour 'in his eyes'.
Omokudu then takes 'anointing oil' and puts his hand at the boy's head.
Whilst massaging the boy's cranium, he says: "Within the identify of God the daddy, God the son, God the holy spirit, I claim this head to be loose from tumour."
He then many times states: "It’s carried out, it’s carried out" sooner than shouting: "Not more tumour! Shout 'Jesus'!"
As the kid walks away, he provides: "He might not be right here back".
VPA has two times been fined through Ofcom for making claims the church has cured other folks of most cancers and HIV on its tv channel.
Imagine TV, was once slammed through the regulator in 2011 and 2012 for announces that includes Omokudu, claiming: "Medical doctors shouldn’t have the solution – we’ve got were given the solution. We’ve got were given the solution to therapeutic."
A ruling said: "Given the content material was once soliciting a reaction from audience and folks experiencing critical diseases who is also at risk of the therapeutic claims being made… Ofcom discovered there was once a subject matter chance that vulnerable individuals of the target market is also exploited through the fabric."
Our investigation discovered Omokudu purchased the valuables for £1m with the assistance of a mortgage from London-based Kenyan nationwide referred to as Kennedy Kulei.
The pastor – who in the past described separation as a sin – divorced from his spouse of 15 years Patricia remaining yr and 3 months later married a Russian girl just about 30 years his junior.
He defined the verdict to his fans, announcing in an interview: "I’ve already remarried. I didn’t need to remarry however God stated I must get out of it and consoled me."
Matthew Ashimolwo, 65, introduced Kingsway Global Christian Centre in 1992 from a rented corridor.
Twenty-five years later the church additionally has £16.4m in belongings, £500,000 within the financial institution and rakes in additional than £8m in income a yr.
Movies display him asking his worshippers to put their fingers on portions in their frame the place they’re troubled through illnesses sooner than announcing "each and every illness and illness on your frame I command it to go away you" sooner than telling them "you don’t have any illnesses and illnesses".
KICC – which principally operates in Walthamstow and the recently-acquired 'Prayer Town' construction in Chatham, Kent –  takes £6.3m a yr from tithing, the place the congregation provides up 10 according to cent of its wage.
The church additionally has a military of one,000 volunteers who supply it with greater than 300,000 hours of loose labour, value greater than £2m-a-year.
However whilst claiming to 'move on his riches' Ashimolowo – described because the church's 'founder, visionary and senior pastor' – lives hire loose in a £1.1m nine-bedroom house in Romford, Essex, owned through the church.
Paperwork acquired through The Solar display the valuables was once bought through the charity with out a loan.
The Nigerian-born pastor lives with spouse Yemisi, 58, who may be a senior pastor on the church and believed to earn greater than £60,000-a-year from her function.
The couple owns a 2d £600,000 house in Grays, Essex, lately lived in through their son.
Ashimolowo was once in 2005 discovered through the Charity Fee to have used £120,000 of church budget to pay for a celebration for himself at a London resort, an £80,000 new Mercedes and a £13,000 Florida timeshare.
He was once additionally paid round £50,000-a-year through the church for 'pastoral products and services' sooner than the 2005 probe discovered he had flouted charity regulations through being a trustee and paying himself a wage.
The Charity Fee discovered there were 'critical misconduct and mismanagement' of charity budget and informed it to ascertain itself as a brand new charity with new trustees – which it did.
Greater than £500,000 was once additionally legally paid through the church to his personal non-public firms together with Matthew Ashimolowo Media Ministries which publishes books and DVDs of his teachings.
Accounts display the publishing corporate raked in additional than £2 million – creating a benefit of £877,000 – between 1999 and 2005 sooner than it began submitting much less detailed monetary statements underneath Firms Space regulations.
Talking about his wealth in an interview this yr, Ashimolowo stated: "Cash is known as forex as it flows to the place it’s celebrated, to anyplace it’s revered and confirmed it’s wanted and may also be treated neatly.
"Anything else God blesses me with I simply use to bless others. I don’t stack it someplace."
But if Solar On-line attended his church, a run-down transformed cinema in Walthamstow, East London, greater than 10 miles from Ashimolowo's plush house, the provider felt extra like a gross sales pitch.
A police probe is ongoing into £3.9m of budget which vanished after Kingsway Global Christian Centre invested thousands and thousands after receiving Olympics goldmine.
Bosses have been left with a providence after the charity's 10-acre website online on Waterden Street, Hackney, was once wanted for the London 2012 Olympics website online.
The world media centre – since taken over through BT Recreation – now stands at the website online which landed KICC £10m of taxpayers' cash.
After the sale in 2007, the church passed over £5m in 3 installments to former Premier League footballer Richard Rufus to put money into the monetary markets.
The previous Charlton defender and born-again Christian were appointed a director at KICC in 2005.
A Charity Fee investigation discovered handiest round £1m was once ever returned, that trustees 'didn’t workout enough care' when making an investment and there was once 'mismanagement within the management of the charity'.
The Solar can divulge Town of London Police has now handed a report to the Crown Prosecution Provider which is thinking about whether or not to press prison fees.
It’s understood Mr Rufus has no longer been arrested in reference to the prison investigation and denies any wrongdoing.
Matthew Ashimolowo isn’t a trustee of the charity and there is not any advice he’s interested in any wrongdoing.
The sermon, entitled 'The Energy of the Tithe', indexed 14 the explanation why worshippers must donate 10 according to cent in their source of revenue to the church.
Ashimolowo informed the congregation: "If you don’t pay the tithe, it’s like you don’t in point of fact believe God".
He labelled the cash an "insurance coverage towards Devil" and warned of the dire penalties of non-payment.
The millionaire – estimated to be value round £6 million through Forbes mag in 2011 – says refusal at hand over masses of kilos a month shall be noticed through God as "disobedience" and lead to it making "unattainable for him to free up your harvest".
 
He added: "Tithe is a great indicator of the place your middle is".
Round 1,000 worshippers – who shall be adopted through a 2d congregation of the day simply mins later – fill out charge paperwork and position them into buckets handed alongside the aisles.
Each church buildings failed to reply to repeated requests from The Solar for remark.
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