A church wedding in Lagos descended into chaos after a man and his family interrupted the ceremony, insisting that the bride was already married to him.
The incident occurred on August 29, 2020, at the Great Salvation Christian Centre, popularly known as Father’s Church, along Ako Aro Road in the Ifako-Ijaiye area of Lagos State.
The man, identified as Iberemu Osadebe, claimed that he and the bride, Gloria, had been together for about 20 years and had a son in 2011. He also maintained that they had completed their traditional marriage rites.
According to a report by PUNCH, Osadebe had been battling a serious illness for several years and had travelled to his hometown in Isiala Mbano, Imo State, for treatment.
He said he was shocked to learn while recovering that Gloria was preparing to marry another man, identified as Henry.
Osadebe returned to Lagos a day before the wedding and reportedly informed the police of his intention to challenge the ceremony.
Although church leaders attempted to calm the situation, tensions escalated when the pastor was about to join the couple in holy matrimony. Osadebe’s relatives approached the pulpit and announced that the bride was already married.
Church security personnel subsequently removed the protesting family from the premises as confusion spread among worshippers.
Osadebe alleged that he had made significant sacrifices for the relationship, including selling property to pay Gloria’s bride price. He said he was prepared to let her go but wanted the matter of their son and the bride price resolved.
However, the church’s founder’s wife, Prophetess Ebube Evans, offered a different account of the relationship. She alleged that Gloria had suffered neglect during her husband’s illness and that the church had supported her and their son financially.
Evans also maintained that the woman had obtained a divorce through the court before agreeing to marry Henry.
However, documents obtained by PUNCH at the time showed that a letter Osadebe described as a divorce notice was actually a summons directing the couple to appear before the Ojo Customary Court in April 2020. The hearing was reportedly affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.
The incident sparked questions about the couple’s marital status and the circumstances surrounding the planned wedding.
