Tobi Adegboyega, a well-known pastor, is set to be deported to Nigeria by the British government after losing his appeal against deportation at the immigration tribunal.
Following investigations that revealed financial mismanagement by the church’s leadership, the UK authorities closed his church, SPAC Nation.
According to information obtained, UK authorities shut down the church after Adegboyega operated opaquely and failed to account for over £1.87 million in outgoings accurately.
However, according to The Telegraph, following investigations, an immigration panel decided that he should be sent back to Nigeria.
Adegboyega has been living in the UK illegally since 2005 when he arrived on a visitor’s visa.
The pastor requested permission to stay in 2019 under the ECHR’s guarantee of family life.
Before he filed an appeal, a first-tier immigration panel had first denied his application.
The pastor, who is married to a British lady, said that deportation would violate his right to a family life under the European Convention on Human Rights and would not take into account his community service with SPAC.
His attorneys characterized him as a “charismatic” community leader of a sizable, well-run church who had “stepped in to guide hundreds of young people, mostly from London’s black communities, away from trouble.”
He claimed that prominent members of the Metropolitan Police and politicians, including former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, had “lauded” his work, but no testimony from them was presented to the court.
But the Home Office took him before an immigration tribunal, arguing that “all is not as it seems.”
However, the tribunal stated that evidence against the Nigerian preacher was taken into consideration.
