Mentally ill man disappears after entering Synagogue church
A 59-year-old man has reportedly gone missing after seeking help at the Synagogue Church of Nations (SCOAN) in Ikotun area of Lagos State.
Dotse Dzrekey, a Ghanaian engineer, reportedly traveled all the way from his country to Nigeria after a friend who is a Synagogue member told him Prophet Temitope Balogun Joshua could help.
Dzrekey, a married father of three children, is reportedly mentally ill. Don Emmanuel, the friend who took him to Synagogue church, said he’s been missing since attending a service in May.
Synagogue church reportedly declined helping to search for the missing man because he didn’t lodge in the church guest house.
“I am a SCOAN member in Ghana,” Emmanuel told Punch.
“I come to Lagos for prayers. Dotse and I came to Lagos on May 5 and we checked into a hotel not on the SCOAN premises.
“We had been going for several prayer sessions. On Sunday, after the church service ended, there were a lot of people coming out. In that process, I discovered he was no longer with me. I went back into the building to check, but he was not there. He was not with a mobile phone.
“I alerted some of the church ushers, who said nobody was found. I thought that he had taken another route and gone to the guest house. I got to the hotel, but he was not there as well.
“There was little SCOAN could do since it was not their guest house we lodged in. I went to the police station on Monday and reported the matter. The police took my statement. But since May 9, neither I nor his family members in Ghana have got any update.
“He did not return to Ghana because his family members called me that he had not returned. The Ghanaian High Commission is also aware of this incident.”
Jacob, Dzrekey’s brother, said “he had some challenges and he came for special prayers. But nobody has seen him ever since then.
“The family members are distressed. His company in Accra has been communicating with us to use all channels in Lagos to get him back,” he said.
The police, without indicating whether they are investigating the disappearance, seemed to have concluded Dzrekey “escaped” from the church.
“The Ghanaian had some mental challenges and was brought to SCOAN for deliverance,” Lagos police spokesperson, Dolapo Badmus is quoted to have said.
“He, however, escaped to an unknown destination. The complainant dropped the victim’s picture and left with a police extract. Ever since then, they have yet to report back at the station.”
Synagogue leaders are yet to comment on the reported disappearance..
