By Sunmola Olowookere

Facts have emerged while the Sotitobire Praising Chapel Church did not record the church service of the day the one year boy, Gold Eninlaoluwa Kolawole got missing.
The sixth defendant and founder of Sotitobire Praising Chapel Church, Alfa Babatunde while being led in evidence by his counsel, Olusola Oke said the church media crew did not always record Sunday services including the Sunday service when the baby got missing .
He said that he got to the church during the choir ministration, handled the sermon and led the congregation in prayers which he said sometimes last till evening about 6 p.m.
He maintained that he was on the altar of the church all through the service.
It would be recalled that the mother of the missing boy had earlier testified that the prophet had left the altar to move around, stopped by her side and directed everyone to close their eyes with the threat that whoever disobeyed would go blind by November.
He explained that it was around 3p.m that he received a note from one of the church deaconesses, asking him to announce that a child had gone missing which he did and he led the congregation to pray on the development.
The defendant claimed he angrily berated the police men that were posted outside the church for security purposes and ordered the pastors to join the children teachers to look for the missing boy.
He said that at the end of the service, parents of the missing boy came to him along with the children teachers where he assured them that they would pray together and the boy would be found.
He narrated the several steps he took in assisting to look for the missing boy including calling the DPO of ‘B’ division, Oke-Aro to report the case that evening, and directed the parents to do same.
He explained that the boy’s parents, all children teachers and ministers including him spent the night in the church in a prayer vigil.
He claimed that in the morning, he put it to the husband that he saw a vision that he knew about the disappearance of his missing son.
He testified that the mother of the missing boy corroborated his words by saying that she suspected as much and also noted that the baby was also kidnapped a year ago.
He also said his lawyer had instructed him to write letters to security agencies on the issue and that letters had been subsequently written to the police and the DSS.
Testifying further, he said that he was coming to the church the next day when he received a call from one of his pastors that some hoodlums were fighting and destroying things in the church.
He stated that a Deputy Commissioner of Police, his church member who came to see him urged him to stay home while assuring him that he would handle the situation.
He claimed that he could hear from the underground of the call clamouring by the hoodlums to set fire on the church.
He said that he was in the church when he saw thugs coming to the church with offensive weapons and shooting into the air.
Alfa Babatunde stated further that the police was able to quell the riot and arrested eight out of the rioters.
He stated that he was afterwards invited to the Deji of Akure’s palace and was defamed in the media over what he knew nothing about.
On December 10, 2019, he said that he was invited at the DSS office and had gone along with his lawyer.
He said he was taken through the back door to his house while they left his lawyer at their office, he explained that they searched his house and office at the church but found nothing incriminating.
He said he was thereafter detained and starved which made him to develop a heart problem.
During cross-examination by the Attorney-General, reminded him of his statement where he wrote that he suspected a foul play in the act of the fourth defendant who observed a strange woman feeding the baby.
He put it to him that he did not report the fourth defendant to the police for investigation.
He was confronted with a television interview where he said that the parents of the missing boy would have to come to him through the right channel and beg him before he would pray for them to find the child.
The witness answered that he was upset by the various rumours peddled by the parents that he kidnapped their child.
Reacting the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Adekola Olawoye SAN who was leading the prosecution talked tough and stated that he was not afraid of threats saying that if he died, he has grown children that will carry his obituary.
Replying, the lead defense counsel stated that he was after unveiling the truth behind the mystery. He divulged that he had told his client that if he was culpable of the allegation levelled against him, he would not go scot free.
Justice Olusegun Odusola thereafter adjourned the case till today.