A
dubious pastor and wife have been arrested after they duped their
congregation members N400 million in an investment fraud scheme.
Pastor Terry Wayne Millender and his wife Brenda
A Virginia pastor, his wife and a friend of theirs have landed in
trouble after allegedly defrauding their Alexandria congregation out of
more than $1 million, Fox5DC reports.
The report states that Terry Wayne Millender, who serves as pastor
for Victorious Life Church in Alexandria; his wife, Brenda; and a
friend, Grenetta Wells, who is also affiliated with the church, were all
recently indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of conspiracy to
commit wire fraud and money-laundering conspiracy.
Authorities say the charges stem from an investment scam in which
the Millenders and Wells convinced congregations to invest in their
company, Micro-Enterprise Management Group, which allegedly helped poor
people in developing countries through the provision of small,
short-term loans to start or build up existing businesses by working
with a network of established microfinance groups, Fox5DC reports.
It was gathered that the three individuals had promised
congregation members guranteed rates of return if they invest, but all
was just a scam. Some investors gave sums ranging from $40,000 to
$400,000, authorities say.
However, instead of using the money for its intended mission, the
Millenders and Wells allegedly conducted risky trading on the
foreign-exchange currency market and also helped fund the purchase of a
lavish $1.75 million residence for the Millenders and other personal
expenses for the defendants.
Things turned sour when parishioners began to question when they
would get their money back, the defendants blamed delays on the 2008
financial crisis, authorities say.
“It didn’t really come as a shock—it was more of a sigh of relief,”
Eric Brown, a former church member, told Fox5DC. According to the news
station, Brown’s family was one of those who invested in the alleged
fraud scheme, although they are not a part of the federal case.
“I asked him like, ‘Hey, that’s a nice car,’” Brown told the station regarding one conversation he said he had with Terry Millender. “He
said, ‘Yeah, $100,000 car. If you save up your money, God’s going to
bless you.’ Come to find out now, it was actually part of our money.”
Both Terry Millender and Grenetta Wells were held without bond
until another hearing set for Wednesday. Brenda Millender was released
after the initial hearing.
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