Apostle Chikere Nwafor, founder of Heaven’s Gateway Ministries, has been accused of shipping her car from the United Kingdom to Nigeria and falsely declaring it stolen to her insurance company.
Speaking to SaharaReporters, her ex-husband, Martin Ogbulu, narrated how the alleged incident occurred, claiming that Chikere misled both him and her insurers over the whereabouts of the vehicle.
According to Martin, the first red flag appeared when he noticed that the car, which was usually parked in a designated space in the UK, suddenly disappeared without any prior discussion.
“When I saw that the parking space was empty, I asked her about it,” he told SaharaReporters. “She calmly told me that her cousins came to borrow the car.”
Martin said the explanation given by Chikere appeared to be plausible at the time.
“She said her cousins were having a wedding or some family event and needed the car,” he said. “She spoke so casually about it, so I didn’t suspect anything. I believed her.”
However, Martin said his initial trust soon gave way to suspicion after an unexpected and urgent call from Chikere weeks later.
More than a month later, she suddenly called me in a panic,” he recalled. “She was begging me repeatedly, saying, ‘Please, my darling, help me. My insurance company is going to call you.’”
According to him, Chikere explained that she was already in Nigeria and claimed she was unable to communicate properly with her UK-based insurance company.
“She said they would contact me instead to confirm details about the car,” Martin said.
He said Chikere informed him that she had already reported the vehicle to the insurance company and had sent them emails claiming it was stolen.
More than a month later, she suddenly called me in a panic,” he recalled. “She was begging me repeatedly, saying, ‘Please, my darling, help me. My insurance company is going to call you.’”
According to him, Chikere explained that she was already in Nigeria and claimed she was unable to communicate properly with her UK-based insurance company.
“She said they would contact me instead to confirm details about the car,” Martin said.
He said Chikere informed him that she had already reported the vehicle to the insurance company and had sent them emails claiming it was stolen.
Not long after that conversation, Martin said he received a call from the insurance firm.
“They called me and asked a direct question: ‘Is the vehicle in the house?’” he said. “I told them the truth as far as I knew, that there was no vehicle there and I had not seen any car.”
Martin said he did not attempt to contradict whatever Chikere may have already told the insurers, as he was unaware at the time that the vehicle had allegedly been shipped out of the country.
“I told them, ‘Whatever she has told you is the truth. I have not seen any vehicle,’” he said. “That was all I said.”
According to Martin, the insurance company later paid Chikere a significant sum of money following the report.
“They paid her close to £17,000,” he alleged. “That was when everything started to make sense to me.”
He further claimed that the vehicle in question was a Lexus RX450h, which Chikere had reported as stolen.
“This is the same woman who owned a Lexus 458,” Martin said. “She told people the Lexus was stolen.”
However, he alleged that the car was never stolen and was instead deliberately shipped to Nigeria.
She shipped the car to Nigeria, and that is the same car she is using here,” he claimed. “I have pictures of the car before it was shipped and pictures of it here in Nigeria.”
Martin provided photographic evidence to back up his claims, insisting that the images clearly show the same vehicle in different locations.
“The car didn’t disappear. It was moved.”
He further alleged that this incident was not an isolated case, claiming that Chikere had a long-standing pattern of deceptive conduct.
“She has so many crooked ways of doing things,” he said. “She has contacts everywhere and knows how to manipulate situations.”
According to him, it was only after reflecting on the timeline of events that he began to fully grasp what he described as a calculated plan.
Recounting the period again, Martin said the incident occurred during one of his stays in the UK, shortly before Chikere travelled to Nigeria.
“When I was in the UK, this was not the very last time, but before I returned in November, that was the same period she came to Nigeria,” he said. “At that time, her car was still parked. After she left, the car was no longer there.”
He alleged that the shipping of the vehicle must have taken place around that period, before the insurance claim was made.
As of the time of filing this report, Apostle Chikere Nwafor had not responded to SaharaReporters’ requests for comments on the allegations. Repeated attempts to reach her for clarification were unsuccessful.
Previously, SaharaReporters reported that Apostle Chikere was accused of orchestrating the arrest and continued incarceration of Mr. Alfred Morris Oyawari, a longtime church caretaker in Lagos State, over allegations of missing building materials.
Alfred had managed all of Chikere’s building projects, houses, and churches since 2018, earning a monthly salary of just ₦40,000.
Despite his years of loyal service, he was arrested in April 2025 and has been held at Ikoyi Prison ever since.
Reports indicate that Alfred was living on the isolated church property in Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos, where he acted as caretaker, site supervisor, and liaison with contractors.
He supervised construction remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic, when both Apostle Chikere and her former husband were abroad, coordinating all work via phone. The church was fully built under his supervision, with minimal pay and support, including a phone provided to him for monitoring purposes.
After the alleged loss of some materials, Alfred was arrested and criminally prosecuted instead of being reprimanded or forgiven.
Martin alleged that the cleric’s actions were motivated by fear that Alfred might later sue her for wrongful detention.
Authorities reportedly demanded that Alfred’s relatives sign an undertaking promising he would not pursue legal action against Chikere as a condition for release.
The ex-husband further claimed that law enforcement officers handling the case were allegedly influenced by Chikere, causing repeated adjournments and delays in court proceedings.
According to Martin, Alfred has occasionally had access to a phone in prison, where he attempted to plead for mercy.
The ex-husband warned that Alfred’s case may represent a broader pattern of abuse, with poor and voiceless Nigerians allegedly being targeted by individuals with influence and power in the criminal justice system.