A 25-YEAROLD woman of Makeni in Lusaka has allegedly been swindled out of over K122,000 by her church leader who asked to pray for her share of the money raised from the sale of a family house. But Prophet Evaristo Siazwela says he put the money in his vehicle and does not know how it went missing. The incident happened on March 15 last year on Lusaka’s Cairo Road between 14:00 hours and 19:00 hours. However, the matter was only reported to police on Wednesday this week after efforts to make the “man of God” pay back the money failed.

The complainant, who refused to disclose her identity, said prophet Siazwela, of Holy Chapel Pentecostal Church, asked to pray for the money before she could use it. “He said I was going to be swindled if I did not give him the money,” she said. The woman, who works as a cleaner, said the prophet has been avoiding her calls and is nowhere to be seen.

“I have information that he is in Chibombo,” she said. The woman said the prophet also allegedly threatened to curse her to die if she continued bothering him.

Police spokesperson Esther Katongo confirmed the incident in an interview yesterday. Ms Katongo said the woman was allegedly swindled out of K122,646 by prophet Siazwela, the leader of Holy Chapel Pentecostal, a church where the victim congregates. “The complainant, with her stepbrother, sold a house at K300,000 which the parents left behind after their death.

The two shared the money and one dependant also benefited. The victim got K122, 646,” she said. The following day after selling the house, the woman was approached by prophet Siazwela, who told her that God had spoken to him and that he saw a lawyer and her brother planning to deprive her of the money.

The prophet reportedly told the woman to give him her money so that he could keep it for her. “Having trusted him, she instructed her lawyer to transfer her money to prophet Siazwela’s account. She had a plan to build a house using the same money,” Ms Katongo said. She said every time the woman asked the prophet about her money, he allegedly keeps giving excuses and that police have instituted investigations into the matter. When contacted, prophet Siazwela agreed that the money was deposited in his account and he later drew it. He said the intention was to find a plot or house for the woman but that she kept turning down what was being found.

Prophet Siazwela said he kept the money in his vehicle and does not know who got it. “My wife and I had differences and in the process, we divorced and she got all the things. It might be during the same period that the money went missing,” he said. Prophet Siazwela denied having gone into hiding and that he is willing to give the woman her money on certain agreed terms, which he did not state. The prophet also denied having threatened to curse the woman. He accused his perceived enemies of using the woman to tarnish his image.