Pathways International Kingdom Restoration Ministries in Montego Bay, St. James
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Corey, a member of Pathways International Kingdom Restoration Ministries
A congregant of Pathways International Kingdom Restoration Ministries in Montego Bay, St. James has disclosed that he was directed by the leader of the church, Kevin Smith, to place him as trustee on his insurance policies.
The 26-year-old man, who has been identified only as Corey, has been a member of the church since 2014.
He was stabbed and shot during what appeared to be a religious ritual at the church on October 17.
Speaking on Thursday on Radio Jamaica's Hotline programme, Corey said he had three insurance policies with his children as beneficiaries.
Despite being married, Corey told Hotline host Emily Shields that he was advised by Mr. Smith to add him to the policies so that "in the event that anything happened, our children...would benefit from the money."
The payout for the policies would amount to more than $1 million each, and Corey explained that as trustee, Kevin Smith would collect those monies since his children are not yet 18 years old.
Asked why he had put so much trust in the religious leader, Corey said Smith gained the confidence of each member of the church and managed to manipulate them.
"This man never showed us any evil or anything. What he did, he portrayed [himself] to be a righteous man of God and we trusted him... It's not until the day, the 17th of October, that we realised who he truly was," he said, recalling the incident which left him wounded and traumatised.
The Pathways member said the incident was "just too much" for him to accept.
His two children have been placed in state care following the happenings at the church and he lamented that Smith had "destroyed our lives, destroyed too many families and [left] a lot of people grieving".
He said he has not yet received counselling.
Pathways leader Kevin Smith died on Monday in a car crash on the Linstead bypass in St. Catherine.
He was being transported by the police from St. James to Kingston for charges to be laid against him in relation to the incident at his organisation in which two of his congregants were killed and others injured in the alleged ritual.
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