Woman claims the cleric tricked her to sign a dubious deal

A woman has sued her pastor for allegedly encroaching on her 0.27 hectares of land.

She claims the pastor tricked her to sign a dubious transaction.

Under a certificate of urgency, Mildred Anyona says her pastor, Francis Ngachi, plans to build a permanent house on the parcel which she bought using a loan she is still servicing.

Ms Anyona, a nurse at a dispensary in Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology, has asked the court to issue an injunction restraining the respondent either by himself or agents from developing the property until the suit is heard and determined.

She says she bought the land on April 6, 2013, from Collins Ondenyo at a cost of Sh130,000 which she paid in two instalments.

Coincidentally, her pastor at Kakamega Gospel Assembly bought land measuring 0.25 hectares adjacent to hers from the same seller.

In court documents, she says the pastor tricked the seller into signing for transfer of the whole parcel, saying they would subdivide the land on their own. Since she trusted the pastor, she signed the sale agreement for the original land parcel number BUTSOTSO/INDANGALASIA/2903 which was to be subdivided between the two.

However, she avers that she came to learn too late that the pastor had registered the whole land in his name and acquired a title deed.

She says being her bishop, she opted to approach him through church elders. Mr Ngachi promised to resolve the matter with the petitioner but he has been non-committal.

Chief Magistrate Bildad Ochieng’ ordered the nurse to serve the respondent with court documents. The case will be heard on May 10.