The Nigerian pastor was apprehended by the police after being accused of swindling people out of their money.
Theo O Ebonyi, a famous person in Benue state, is being accused of cheating his followers and others out of over 1. 3 billion naira (about $930,000 or £740,000).
He was arrested and released on bail last year, but this information has only just been made known to the public, according to a spokesperson from the anti-corruption authority.
Mr Ebonyi said that the news is not true and was spread by bloggers.
He didn’t say anything about the things people are saying about him.
The EFCC in Nigeria says Mr. Ebonyi told his victims to pay $1,300 each to get a $20 billion grant from the Ford Foundation in the US.
However, it says that the foundation did not give that money.
The EFCC found out that the Ford Foundation didn’t have any deal, money, connection or work with Ebonyi, according to a statement from the agency.
“The foundation made it clear that they are not connected to him or his NGO in any way. ”
The EFCC says that Mr Ebonyi, who leads Faith on the Rock Ministry International church, bought five properties with money he got fraudulently.
The EFCC says he will go to court once the investigations are finished. It is still not known what exactly he will be accused of.
In a video Me Ebonyi posted on Facebook, he said that the news about his arrest was fake and made up by bloggers. This was around the same time as the EFCC announced his arrest. I am attempting to make money using my physical abilities. That is a really big lie. “It’s a lie. ”
But EFCC spokesperson Dele Oyewale told Punch newspaper that Mr Ebonyi had been arrested and then let go last year, and was now out on bail.
“He was arrested for a while, but we didn’t say anything because we were still investigating,” the spokesperson said.