THE FRAUD CONTINUES IN KENYA

A report by John S. Torell

On March 21, 2007 we posted a report on the mission work we had done in Kenya, by giving assistance to Isaiah Kego Oendo and his wife Rose. After several years of support we found out that this couple was defrauding a number of different ministries in the United States, Canada and Australia and after an investigation, we withdrew our support. Since we have posted the report on our website, we have received several e-mails from Isaiah Oendo asking us to remove them. Here are two of them:

Isaiah is still using our name on his church in Kenya but not telling us that he is in contact with other churches or what he is telling them. On November 26, 2008, I received another letter from Isaiah:

After reading several letters from Isaiah and his wife Rose, I began to think that they really had repented of their sins in working different churches at the same time and telling each church that they adhered to their doctrine only. Therefore, I wrote to them and told them that our ministry was willing to reconsider our stand with them. Their letter written on November 28, 2008 impacted me and I wanted to be sure that we were doing the right thing.

Here is what I wrote to them:

December 3, 2008

Dear Isaiah,

We are going to have a board meeting on December 13. As I have been praying and thinking about the issue we had with you and your wife Rose, we need to have some proof from you that you are no longer working in deception. I don't care if you are a Seventh Day Adventist and worship on Saturday or if you worship like the rest of us do on Sundays. What we care about is that you are telling the truth, who you are, how you worship, etc. We are not sure if all the needs you presented to Sister Lois were genuine or made up. There are thousands of "professing Christians" in Kenya, Nigeria and other nations in Africa, who are scam artists and fleecing Christians in the U.S., Canada and Western Europe.

Just to give you an idea how bad it is, let me present this story to you. In the nation of Haiti there was a man who had an orphanage. Big ministries in the U.S. like the 700 Club, TBN, etc. would send a film crew to this orphanage to show the people in America how bad these children live. The man in the orphanage "rented out" his place and would beat the children in order to make them cry, to prepare them to be filmed. The children were filmed and it made a heartbreaking story, which was later shown on American Christian television. People responded and sent in millions of dollars to help these poor children. Little of that money ever went to feed the children. Most went into the pockets of greedy American television evangelists; some of the money went to the man who ran the orphanage.

What I am saying is this: there are scams in the U.S. and around the world. We need letters from people outside your ministry, who can testify about you. We need letters from the people in your ministry. We need pictures that will tell a true story, not fake pictures. Present us with evidence that you have changed and I will present this at the board meeting.

Pastor John

Here is the letter I received back from Isaiah’s Church Secretary:

Greetings, Here with attached fiend a confirmation letter from our church Resusrection Life of Jesus church – Kenya. Hope it will be of importance in your board meeting on 13th Dec in regard to our ealier request. Also attached find photos taken on 7th Dec during our Sunday service. Pass our prayerful regards to all the rest in Jesus Love. Thanks Josiah. Secretary. Isaiah & Rose Oendo Crusade Praying for the sick Praying for the works in the church Walking out of church shade

Attached to this letter was a hand written letter signed by a number of people in the congregation in which they stated that Isaiah no longer held the view of the Seventh Day Adventists and that they worshiped on Sundays. There were also seven pictures, which they claimed had been taken on December 7, 2008.

We also received a letter from Moses Asiago, who claims to be an overseer of churches in Kenya. We are posting the letter as we received it. This letter arrived December 3, 2008.

† Box 334 Gucha 40204 Kenya † 

Phone : † (254)723 060 154  

E-mail: figkenya@yahoo.com † Website: www.figleafmin.org

THE BIG SURPRISE

On December 2, 2008, I received an e-mail from Pastor Dudley Anderson of Cornerstone Family Church in England. In his letter he told me that his church had been supporting Isaiah and Rose Oendo and wanted to know if these were the same people we had written a report about and posted on our website. I responded and sent pictures we had just received from Kenya. He wrote me back and told me, that we were indeed talking about the same people and that Isaiah and Rose had contacted Cornerstone Family Church in June 2006, while we were still active in our support for the Oendos. www.cornerstonefamilychurch.co.uk/

Here is what Pastor Anderson told us:

Rose Oendo wrote a letter to the church and asked for help in leading her ladies’ group. [People in third world nations are constantly searching the Internet for Christian websites in the West to send help in form of finances and books.] Rose also asked that Bibles would be sent to them. Pastor Anderson shared this information with his church and the people became very excited and wanted to be part of a mission work in Kenya. When Pastor Anderson wrote to Isaiah and told him the good news, Isaiah wrote back to him and told him that they would take the name of Cornerstone Family Church to be the name of their church and orphanage in Kenya.

What Isaiah did not tell Pastor Anderson was that the same scheme had been used on us in 2006 and that Isaiah had named his church, Resurrection Life of Jesus Church-Kenya. He had asked us for funds ($1,200.00) to register his church with the Republic of Kenya under our name. In return he had sent us a certificate from the Kenyan government that the church was now duly registered.

Isaiah used the money we sent to register his church but also told Pastor Anderson that he wanted to name the church in Kenya after Cornerstone Family Center. This leaves me wondering if Isaiah ever tried to register his church under our name or if he just pocketed the $1,200.00 and sent us a fraudulent registration paper?

Isaiah and Rose used the same type of flattery on Pastor Anderson as they did with us when they told us that they were thrilled with the great teaching we had in our ministry and that they wanted to name their church after ours. I wonder how many more names they have for their church in Kenya and how many more ministries have been taken for a ride?

Pastor Anderson wrote this to me:

“We have been supporting Isaiah and Rose since July 2006. We've sent them hundreds of pounds, Bibles and stationary & gifts. We are a small Assemblies of God church but our folk have taken their plight to heart. We have been praying for them and even have a display of their pictures on a board in our church - yes, the same pictures you have sent me.

We assumed that they were receiving support from elsewhere but were very proud of the fact that they had "chosen" to call themselves Cornerstone Family Church. Isaiah even told me that he had planted several churches in Ogembo, all called Cornerstone Family Church. We sent them a covering letter and a copy of our statement of faith as a seal on their link with us.”

Pastor Anderson informed me that he has now put on hold all funds to Kenya and removed all information about Isaiah on their website. I was therefore very surprised when I received the following e-mail on December 11, 2008 after Pastor Anderson had informed Isaiah that he had lost all support from Cornerstone Family Church. It showed me that Isaiah was still trying to influence us to lift our sanctions on him even though Isaiah must have realized that Cornerstone Family Church had contacted us and we were now aware of their fraudulent ways in order to milk money from these churches. This indicates that Isaiah is not alone in this scheme, but there are several people posing as ministers involved in defrauding churches in the West.

THE FRAUD

Isaiah told us that the name of his church is Resurrection Life of Jesus Church-Kenya. At the same time he told Pastor Dudley Anderson that the name of the church is Cornerstone Family Church. Isaiah lied to us and to Pastor Anderson. How many other people is he currently lying to as well? Moses Asiago has either been duped by Isaiah or is part of the deception. All the people in the church where Isaiah is the pastor have been made liars since they are part of the scheme in the different names of the church.

LIVING A LIFE AS LIARS

Isaiah and Rose have children who are being brought up to believe that it is all right to lie, cheat and deceitfully take people’s money. I don’t even know if the pictures sent to us and Cornerstone Family Church are actually taken by a church pastored by Isaiah or if it is from some other meeting.

Be warned, Isaiah and Rose Oendo are professional liars and have become thieves by defrauding churches and individual Christians! They are to be repudiated and shunned by the Christian community until they publicly repent and stop their shameful scams!

To Isaiah and Rose I want to give this warning: Repent before it is too late!

“For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:

Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?

For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Hebrews 10:26-31)

In order to stop further fraudulent attempts by the Oendos, we are posting the pictures sent to us from Isaiah and Rose, which were the same pictures sent to Cornerstone Family Church.

First Report: Our Africa Mission

Second Report: The Fraud Continues in Kenya

Third Report: Isaiah & Rose Oendo Repent

Back to Being Berean: Various Subjects and The Bible's Answers