London street preacher exclusive: ‘I forgive police but God will deal with them’

Footage of his arrest in February – viewed over 2 million times – has sparked a protest and prompted a petition calling on the Government to take urgent action.

Pastor Olu was preaching outside Southgate underground station when complaints were made and police arrived, confiscated his Bible, handcuffed him and took him away.

 

While he believes he was treated unfairly, the pastor told Premier he has forgiven the police.

Speaking about the officer that handcuffed him, he said: “I pray to God to handle him.

“Everyone that is against the gospel – God will deal with them. He knows what to do with them.

“I forgive them but God knows what he will do to them.”

 

The Met Police originally claimed Pastor Olu was taken 200m away before being de-arrested but later told Premier that it has changed its version of events and acknowledged he had been driven a number of miles away.

Pastor Olu, who moved to the UK from Nigeria, maintained that he wasn’t preaching a message of hate as had been reported by members of the public. Rather, he insisted he was on the receiving end of abuse.

“The police were with evil mind because I was the one to be protected,” he explained.

“There was a Muslim man who was saying, ‘no, Allah is the way’.

“I said, ‘how could Allah be the way?’

“He was accosting me – he was even standing in my presence before the policemen came. And when the policemen came he left.”

A Christian preacher this afternoon was arrested at Southgate station London N14 for preaching about Jesus . @CConcern the police told him it’s because public had said he was being islamophobic . We have the full video and wondered when preaching was now illegal ? @Campaign4Tpic.twitter.com/ZxC1DhlZCf

— Eye On Antisemitism (@AntisemitismEye) February 23, 2019

 

Pastor Olu, who has been provided a lawyer by Christian Concern, revealed this wasn’t the first time he has been arrested for street preaching.

“I have been preaching all over and the police have been on my trail,” he said.

“I was even arraigned in a court in 2017 and I was bailed when I had the understanding that I was just to repatriate but I refused.”

The pastor was permitted to remain in the UK and undeterred from continuing to preach the Gospel.

“There is no power on earth that can silence me,” he said.

Listen to Premier’s Eno Adeogun speaking with Pastor Olu:

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Oluwole Ilesanmi’s, the street preacher who became known across the world because of his arrest in London has told Premier he has forgiven the police men who stopped him preaching and confiscated his Bible.