Fake Christian website ordered to return $7.8M to consumers

A Christian organization in the US state of Washington, which asked people to pay for prayers, has been ordered to return $7.8 million it fleeced from hapless victims across the country.

Benjamin Rogovy, the Seattle businessman behind the Christian Prayer Center (CPC), charged over 125,000 desperate prayer seekers between $9 and $35 each for spiritual support, the state Attorney General's Office said.

Between 2011 and 2015 authorities say Rogovy used "systematic deception" and “unfair and deceptive business practices” to collect more than $7 million from consumers nationwide through his online prayer services.

The websites – christianprayercenter.com and oracioncristiana.org – offered to pray for English and Spanish speakers respectively if they paid for the service.

The state attorney general, Bob Ferguson ordered Rogovy to stop his deception and repay the money he took from the unsuspecting customers. Rogovy is also to pay attorney costs, court fees and $1m in civil penalties if he does not comply with the order.

"At the basic level, it's a scam and he was asking people to give money under deceptive circumstances to have prayers done for them. ... Pay to pray. ... Nothing about it was real," Ferguson said.

“I believe in the power of prayer. What I do not believe in and what I will not tolerate is unlawful businesses that prey upon people – taking advantage of their faith or their need for help – in order to make a quick buck.”

A consumer, who had written in to the agency, saying she feared she’d been taken advantage of, sparked the yearlong investigation.

The Christian Prayer Center website not only charged consumers money for prayers but also "deliberately" confused some consumers into signing up for recurring monthly payments, according to authorities.

It also had fake ministers – Pastor John Carlson and Pastor Eric Johnson – who were available for consultation and counseling. Both pastors do not exist, authorities say.

The real John Carlson, a Washington pastor, said he is in no way linked to the site. He told a TV station that he had been vilified by people who thought he was involved in the website.

Ferguson’s statement said: “Between 2011 and 2015, CPC collected more than $7 million from 125,000 consumers nationwide. Some of these consumers were charged repeatedly, resulting in a total of over 400,000 transactions.”

Investigators said that fake religious leaders, stock photos and fictitious testimonials were used to entice nearly 165,000 people between 2011 and 2015. The fake testimonials claimed that prayers had helped individuals avoid home foreclosure, win the lottery, as well as have a healthy baby.

"Rogovy's actions violate the state Consumer Protection Act, which forbids businesses from making false claims, and the Charitable Solicitations Act, which prohibits churches and charities from using misleading or deceptive statements in any charitable solicitation," the statement said.