AWKA – A self-styled evangelist has been arrested by the Anambra State Special Anti-Touting Squad (SASA) for allegedly raping and impregnating a 16-year-old girl in his residence, authorities have confirmed.
Evangelist Dozie Favour Ezani, the General Overseer of Jesus Is Ontop Ministry in Amichi, Nnewi South Local Government Area, is currently in police custody following an investigation launched after a tip-off from security personnel in the neighbouring community of Igboukwu.
Presenting the victim, identified as Miss Precious Okafor, to journalists at the SASA headquarters in Awka on Friday, agency spokesperson Karen James detailed how the teenager was handed over to the suspect by her aunt for “special deliverance.”
“When she was interrogated, we discovered she was pregnant. She mentioned the name of the evangelist, who is now in custody,” Ms James said.
According to the agency, the abuse began in November 2025 shortly after the victim arrived at the suspect’s house. Ms James alleged that the evangelist repeatedly sexually assaulted the teenager and threatened to kill her if she ever revealed what was happening.
Narrating her ordeal, Miss Okafor said she had been placed in the cleric’s care by her aunt, without the knowledge or consent of her mother, who resides in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
“Daddy Ezani started having forceful sex with me a few days after I arrived in his house for the special deliverance,” she said. “It was my aunty who consulted Daddy Ezani about my behaviour after I relocated back to the village from Lagos. In response, Daddy Ezani told them that I came from the seven seas of the world, hence I needed urgent and special deliverance from God to be free.”
The teenager alleged that she was assaulted multiple times inside the church, on the farm, and at the evangelist’s residence before she was rescued. She also disclosed that she does not know her father and is an indigene of Amichi.
In a distressing account, Miss Okafor appealed for urgent medical assistance, stating: “As I speak to you now, blood is coming out from my private part as a result of the mixed concoctions Daddy Ezani gave me to drink to abort the pregnancy. I have no money to go to the hospital for proper treatment. I am appealing to the state government, NGOs and well-to-do individuals to come to my aid, so that I can properly treat myself.”
She expressed gratitude to the SASA operatives for their intervention.
Meanwhile, a viral video circulating online appears to show the suspect, Evangelist Ezani, admitting to the crime. In the footage, he is seen begging security operatives to “temper justice with mercy,” blaming the devil for his actions.
He reportedly confessed to administering a mixture of bitter leaf and other herbs to the victim in an attempt to terminate the pregnancy, hoping to avoid public shame.
He also promised to cover the victim’s medical bills if released.
SASA was established by Governor Chukwuma Soludo, alongside other local security outfits such as Agunechemba and Udo-Ga-Achi, to combat touting, extortion, criminality, and other illegal activities across the state.
