Lagos Pastor, Chris Okafor’s In-laws Arrested Over Suspicious Death

MICHAEL AKINOLA 

The parents of Pearl Okafor, wife of the founder of Grace Nation International Church, Pastor Chris Okafor, have been arrested by the police in Lagos over an investigation into the suspicious death of businessman, Mr Solomon Iwerebor.

The suspects, Mr Justin Iwerebor and his wife, Anthonia, are the parents of Pearl. Justin is the elder brother of the deceased.

Solomon, who lived in Germany with his wife and children, was staying at Justin’s residence during a visit to Nigeria before his death in September 2026.

Their arrest followed a petition dated September 15, 2026, submitted to the police by the law firm of Dr Charles Mekwunye, SAN, on behalf of the Iwerebor family.

In the petition addressed to the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, the family requested that Justin and his wife, who were among the last persons to have contact with the deceased, be questioned over the circumstances surrounding his death.

The family alleged that Solomon had lost contact with other members of the family after moving into Justin’s residence more than two years ago.

According to the petition, when the family could no longer reach him, his daughter, Miss Jade, who lives in Germany, contacted Pearl to enquire about her father.

Pearl reportedly informed her that Solomon had taken ill, could no longer speak and had been taken to Benin for treatment.

The family, however, said it was shocked to receive news of his death from a third party, adding that they were not informed until four days after his death on September 6, 2026.

They expressed concern that, despite repeated requests, Justin allegedly failed to provide information about the circumstances surrounding Solomon’s death, including the nature of his illness, the hospital where he was treated and available medical records.

The family also alleged that the deceased was an active member of Pastor Chris Okafor’s Grace Nation International Church and had spent substantial sums seeking spiritual intervention and deliverance from the cleric.

It maintained that Pastor Chris and his wife might have relevant information about events preceding Solomon’s death, particularly his health condition and movements.

Justin and his wife, Anthonia, were arrested on Monday, November 2, 2026, by police operatives at Panti, Lagos, following the family’s petition and subsequent investigation.

Sources familiar with the investigation disclosed that there had been pressure on the police to release the suspects. Pastor Chris was also said to have visited the police formation on Thursday.

However, it could not be established whether the visit was at the invitation of the police or in solidarity with his in-laws.

When contacted, a representative of Pastor Chris told this newspaper that the cleric would address the issue at the appropriate time.

Speaking at a press conference last week, two sisters of the deceased, Mrs Stella Iwerebor and Mrs Udo Hamis, alongside their lawyer, Dr Mekwunye, said they were distressed by the circumstances surrounding their brother’s death and the lack of information about events leading to and following his death.

They said Solomon had not been seen by members of the family for more than two years after he travelled to Nigeria and stayed with Justin and his wife.

According to them, efforts to establish the nature of the illness that allegedly led to his death, the hospital where he was treated and the whereabouts of his remains had proved unsuccessful, as the suspects allegedly failed to provide the information.

They said: “All we want is proper investigation. Our brother has died under very disturbing circumstances and we want to know how he died. It is hard that we have lost one brother and another one and his wife are suspects in the death, but we want answers.

“We want the police to conduct a thorough investigation and not bow to any pressure. We want to know where his corpse is, all that transpired before and after his death, and why we were not informed four days after he died. Our family deserves answers.”

The family had earlier petitioned the Lagos State Police Command, demanding a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding Solomon’s death.

The petition also sought information on the whereabouts of his remains, the identity and location of the hospital where he was allegedly treated, as well as relevant medical records.

Following the referral of the case to the Lagos State Criminal Investigation Department, SCID, Panti, and the invitation of the suspects, the Zone 2 Command reportedly attempted to take over the investigation.

This prompted the family to submit another petition to the Inspector-General of Police on October 23, 2026.

In the petition, the family alleged that the suspects had failed to honour police invitations at Panti. They also questioned the decision to transfer the investigation to Zone 2, which they claimed did not have a homicide division.

The family urged the IGP to order the transfer of the case back to Panti and direct that the final investigation report be forwarded to the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation for appropriate legal action.

Following the arrest of the suspects, the family appealed to the police not to succumb to pressure to release them hastily or compromise the investigation.

Among other demands, they asked the police to establish the identity and location of the hospital in Benin City, Edo State, where Solomon was allegedly taken for treatment and obtain relevant medical records.

They also urged the police to establish the whereabouts of his remains and ensure that the body was not moved, buried, cremated or otherwise disposed of in a manner that could frustrate investigations.

The family further demanded an autopsy or other appropriate forensic examinations to determine the cause of death, in accordance with applicable laws and forensic procedures.

As at press time, the police had not issued an official statement on the outcome of the interrogation, and no charges had been announced.