The Celestial Church of Christ Worldwide has distanced itself from Afolabi Hodonu, who was recently arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) alongside his wife over alleged possession of illicit drugs.
NDLEA operatives had on Thursday apprehended Hodonu and his wife at the Gbaji checkpoint in Lagos, where 11kg of skunk was reportedly recovered from hidden compartments in their vehicle.
Hodonu had claimed to be the Shepherd in charge of the Celestial Church of Christ, Agonvi Sea Beach, located in the Sakpo area of the Seme border, Badagry.
According to reports, the agency’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, said the arrest followed an earlier operation at the same checkpoint on Monday, March 30, when a suspected fake security agent, Sunday Samuel, was intercepted while transporting 24.5kg of skunk from Seme border to Lagos.
He stated that investigations from the earlier seizure led to the arrest of the cleric and his wife, noting that the operation was part of a broader crackdown carried out by the agency across the country within the past week.
Reacting to the development, the Head of Media and Publicity of the church, Kayode Ajala, said administrative records showed that the suspect and his wife are not members of the Ketu mainstream of the Celestial Church of Christ under the leadership of Reverend Emmanuel Oshoffa.
Ajala expressed concern over the involvement of the church’s name in the incident, describing the allegation as a disreputable act.
He further disclosed that the church would deploy a task force to the Seme area of Badagry, Lagos State, to verify the circumstances surrounding the incident.
