A former Pastor of the Lighthouse Chapel International (LCI), Larry Odonkor, has been sentenced to a two-year jail term by a Court of Appeal in Madagascar.
He was found guilty of fraudulently selling the church’s car and embezzling the proceeds.
The court has also ordered Odonkor to pay the church the value of the Toyota Land Cruiser, estimated at about GHC200,000.
The court’s decision came in a default judgment, which held Odonkor responsible for the fraudulent breach of trust.
According to documents, LCI had filed complaints against Odonkor, accusing him of fraudulent breach of trust, money laundering, stealing, and defrauding by false pretenses.
Larry Odonkor served as the head Pastor of LCI-Madagascar until December 2019 when he relocated to Accra. It was during this transition that it was discovered the official vehicle assigned to him could not be found.
Further investigation revealed that Odonkor had instructed multiple individuals to help him sell the car before leaving Madagascar.
One of those he instructed was his assistant Pastor, Edmund Amartey, who was unaware that the car did not belong to Odonkor.
Mr Amartey sold the car and handed all the proceeds to Odonkor.
WhatsApp chats between Odonkor and Amartey were submitted as evidence, showing that Odonkor directed the sale of the car and instructed Amartey to send all the proceeds to him.
Odonkor also found a way to receive part of the sale proceeds in Accra through an administrator of LCI-Ghana without disclosing the money’s origin. This led to the money laundering charges.
Although the court made Mr Amartey a co-accused in the case due to his role in the sale, he was acquitted and discharged as it was evident he had unwittingly helped Odonkor in the transaction.
LCI – Madagascar has reported that Larry Odonkor has appealed the court’s decision.
However, he must appear in person in Madagascar to contest the judgment. Additionally, an arrest warrant has been issued for Odonkor, allowing his arrest anytime he enters Madagascar’s territory.
