SPAC Nation: London church wound up over financial mismanagement

The church's leader, pastor Tobi Adegboyega, has always denied the accusations

A London church has been wound up at the High Court after suspicious or incorrect accounts were filed.

Salvation Proclaimer Ministries Limited, also known as SPAC Nation, has also been deemed to be insolvent.

Allegations the church was financially exploiting young people first emerged in 2019 but the Met Police dropped its investigation in 2020.

The Christian evangelical church was set up as a charity in 2012 looking to help vulnerable people and offenders.

Allegations of financial exploitation by senior church personnel have always been denied by church leader Pastor Tobi Adegboyega.

MP Steve Reed (left) and Dapo Adegboyega of SPAC Nation appeared on BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme

A report by BBC Panorama in 2019 featured former SPAC Nation members who accused the church of wrongdoing.

In January 2020, the London-based church, praised for helping ex-gang members, was accused of financial exploitation and fraud by Croydon MP Steve Reed.

But in February, the Met dropped its criminal case against SPAC Nation, which said it had been "vindicated" by the force's finding no criminal act of "fraud and other offences".

The Insolvency Service has been investigating the church and interviewed one of the company's directors, Pastor Dapo Adegboyega, the younger brother of Tobi.

Although he said the church group had more than 2,000 members and 200 ordained ministers and pastors, he failed to provide any supporting information.

SPAC Nation said it had been "vindicated" after the Met Police dropped its investigation

SPAC Nation also could not provide full data to support claimed donations, nor accounting records in support of £1.87m of expenditure, which are statutory requirements.

Chief investigator Edna Okhiria said information was "inconsistent", accounting records inadequate and also said the church operated with "a lack of transparency".

"While SPAC Nation claimed it had noble intentions to support vulnerable and young people, our inquiries uncovered a different side of the charity," she said.

"There were clear concerns around how the church group managed its affairs and SPAC Nation failed to properly account for income received from donations and other expenditure."

The Charity Commission is still examining financial, governance and safeguarding matters at the charity.

SPAC Nation and the Met Police have been contacted for comment.

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