How church accountant used over GHS40K offering for sports betting and got jailed

How a church accountant in Ghana used over GHS40,000 for sports betting has left many worried and several others shocked. Ghanaians were made to believe that only unemployed youth pegged at 4% of the population were engaged in sports betting.

The story of a 32-year-old accountant, Edward Unicorn, sentenced to two years in prison for dishonestly appropriating GHC40,433.50 from the Ghana Police Church and using the funds to bet and chill in nightclubs has raised more questions.

Factually, there are many young men and women in the house of God who are actively addicted to sports betting and not Edward Unicorn alone.

However, his story has gained sport light. Ghana woke up to what would have been deemed a cock and bull story, but it turned out to be true.

Univorn was convicted on his own plea when he admitted to using the money to stake bets due to betting addiction. The Adentan Circuit Court, presided over by Sedinam Awo Kwadam, handed the judgement to bring the case to a close.

Unicorn’s journey to the prison cell began in June 2024, when he was employed by the Ghana Police Church as an accountant.

His responsibilities included collecting cash from ushers, managing the church’s mobile money accounts, preparing payroll, and submitting monthly reports to the Financial Committee.

Below is a simplified detail of all the critical incidents.

How church Accountant used over GHS40K offering for sports betting: Unicorn’s Journey to the Prison Cell

Before judgement was passed, Unicorn revealed what he used the money for and asked to be granted bail so that he could work and pay the debt. However, the court was unmoved by his plea, directing him to pay GHC5,000 and ordering that an amount of GHC2,775 retrieved from him be given to the Ghana Police Church.

While this move by the church through the court has been welcomed by many, the question on the lips of many faithful Christians is where is the forgiving power of God in the word gospel of forgiven others that Jesus preached and demonstrated even on the cross.

If the church cannot forgive, how will those outside the church believe in the gospel and the forgiveness of sins as preached by the church?

What is the moral lesson from the decision of the Church to get the young man jailed and what is the moral lesson from the how the church Accountant used over GHS40K offering for sports betting?

What do you have to say about this story as a Christian?