US-based Ghanaian pastor who shot his wife to death in Orlando, Florida, Sylvester Ofori, in related development to fatally shooting his wife, has appeared in court for the first time.
In court, Sylvester Ofori was subdued and quiet while facing a judge, as reported by WESH 2 News.
He’s accused of murdering his wife, Barbara Tommey, 27, as she went to work at Navy Federal Credit Union on Tuesday morning, September 8.
During court proceedings, the judge presiding over the case told Ofori and his legal representative, prosecutors told her his killing was caught on video.
“Video surveillance which shows Mr Ofori not only shoots his wife but then stands over her body and puts additional rounds into her head,” she told the court.
Ofori, who is a pastor of the Floodgates of Heaven on Coburn Avenue in Orlando, but according to a report by prosecutors, he calls himself a prophet on his Facebook page.
“He does have quite a large social media following where he speaks to his followers. Calls himself a prophet, his followers call him a prophet,” Orlando police Det. Matthew Rogers said.
After the shooting, police went to his former apartment building where Ofori and Tommey had, at one point, lived together.
Investigators said they brought the SWAT team and eventually found him in the home.
“We had a good feeling he was going to be in there. We don’t believe there was any risk to the public or immediate danger to the public,” Rogers said.
As to what exactly prompted him to kill his wife, the police have not yet ascertained even though there was an alleged divorce arrangement ongoing between Tommey and Ofori.
Court records also show that in 2016, Ofori was arrested for resisting an officer who responded to an argument between the two.
“Someone committed a heinous act of violence towards a loved one and there’s no excuse for that,” Rogers said.
