Guardian Controversy trails Celestial Church’s leader’s death in London.. MONDAY, 07 OCTOBER 2013 00:00 BY ODITA SUNDAY NEWS - METRO • Buried on September 28, 2013, after one year in UK morgue THE way and manner business mogul and doyen of Celestial Church Worldwide, Prince Ademola Haastrup died has remained a mystery to his family and his children. The late Port Harcourt-based businessman, Haastrup died in London in 2012, but was buried two weeks ago, after one year in the morgue in the United Kingdom. His first son, Adewale Haastrup claimed he was not carried along, therefore, he could not attend the burial. The children are aggrieved and have asked his 35-year-old wife, Ngozi Haastrup (nee Okorie) to explain what killed their father. The Nigeria Police Interpol section for last week, arrested her for interrogation. The Police had stormed Ilesa, Osun State home of the late Haastrup to arrest her over the death of her husband, who was the General Overseer of the Rebisi Group of Parishes, Celestial Church, Captain Israel Ademola Haastrup. The paramount ruler of the land, Owa Obokun of Ijesaland, Oba Adekunle Aromolaran has intervened in the matter. Born on March 26, 1933, Captain Israel Haastrup married Ngozi Okorie after the death of his first wife, Elizabeth Nana Haastrup, a Ghanaian, who died on May 29, 1995. His son, Adewale Haastrup told newsmen that his father’s marriage to Okorie met brick wall, culminating in a divorce in 2007. “The marriage was dissolved by the Chief Judge of Rivers State, Hon. Justice Iche N. Ndu, on the July 16, 2007, by a DECREE NISI, which became absolute and effective on January 16, 2008. “Shortly after the divorce, however, the Master Mariner and former Chairman of Eastern Bulk Cement Company took ill and had to be flown to the United Kingdom for treatment. While in the UK, he was diagnosed of dementia, diabetes Type II and mild stroke for which he began receiving treatment at Wellington Hospital, United Kingdom,” Haastrup said. “That was the last time his family would ever see him until his corpse was brought back to Nigeria four years later, which was last week,” he said. Adewale Haastrup alleged that their patriarch was completely shielded from his children and relations with no family member knowing of his whereabouts until they heard of his death in October 2012. Ngozi who spoke to The Guardian, through email noted that the Haastrup’s family was peddling lies against her in order to tarnish her image. She said she had already made statements to the Interpol “I make this statement to force CID – Interpol Section in response to the Petition against me. Certain false, malicious and baseless allegations have been and are being leveled against me by Mrs. Susan Shola Oyemade, Mr. John Adewale Haastrup Mr. Gabriel Kwesi Haastrup and Mr. Adesuyi Haastrup. The first is the only surviving sister of my late husband (of full blood). The second and third persons are my husband’s 1st and third sons respectively. I do not know and I have only met Mr. Adesuyi Haastrup once. He was not close to my late husband,” she said. According to her: “I was married to the late Captain Haastrup in June 1998 after the death of his first wife, Mrs. Elizabeth Nana Haastrup in 1995. I met my husband in 1997 for the first time. I was just 20 years of age when we got married. Since I was so young, my parents consented to the marriage and encouraged me through the intervention of Chief Vincent Onyeali, my uncle, who was Captain’s best friend. We were first married under Native Law & Custom and later at the Marriage Registry, Port Harcourt . We have two children together, Deborah Aderonke (14 years), Joshua Adedokun (12 years). “In 2007, my husband and I were estranged. Things deteriorated and he initiated divorce proceedings against me in PHC/831MC/2007. I was not served court papers because I was in England. Somehow, he still got a DECREE NISI granted in his favour on July 16, 2007. The decree nisi was to become absolute in January 2008 except we reconciled, or the validity of the DECREE NISI was challenged. He also wrote a letter to my father to say he was no longer interested in marrying me. But he did not demand return of dowry nor did he waive its return as our Mbieri custom demanded. “ I also initiated divorce proceedings against him here in England where I have been living on a permanent basis since 2007. Because my husband’s decree nisi could not become absolute unless law made arrangements for the welfare and maintenance of our two teenage children, and myself he had to go back to the same court to ask for Ancillary Reliefs and Maintenance Orders. It was the application in this respect that was served on me by DHL and that was how I got to know of the proceedings. I immediately challenged the decree nisi and asked that it be set aside. On 1.11.2007, my husband wrote a letter to me asking for reconciliation. This letter was copied to his own divorce lawyer (Mr. Wilcox Abereton, who acknowledged receipt and to my own divorce lawyer (Mr. OCJ Okocha, SAN, who also acknowledged receipt. I also wrote back to him agreeing to reconciliation on certain terms and meetings were scheduled for England. She noted that he reconciled with her husband before he died. According to her, “This was the state of things in the Courts when my husband and I were reconciled here in England in March, 2010. By this time, he had suffered a stroke in May 2009 and had been brought to England for treatments. Before the stroke of 2009, he had suffered a mild stroke in 2002; I nursed him back to health. He suffered a more severe stroke in 2005; I also nursed him back to health. “ On both occasions, I brought him to England within days of the incidents and ensured he got very prompt medical attention. He fully recovered. There was neither speech nor motor impairment. I was not with him when the May 2009 stroke occurred. His third son, Gabriel Kwesi Haastrup, brought him to England after almost five weeks of the stroke. Whilst in England, he was kept away from my children and I although we were frantically looking for him because he was not at 15, Langthorne Road, Leytonstone – the family house. By Divine intervention, his daughter, Elizabeth Haastrup, telephoned me in March to say my husband was back in Langthorne Road and had been asking to see Deborah and Joshua.” Captain Haastrup’s family wants answers to several questions, including the actual cause of his death. The family also wants to know what happened to their father’s wealth during the period the family members did not see him.
Posted on: Mon, 07 Oct 2013 07:38:22 +0000
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