EXCLUSIVE Constance Marten's 'life was ruined' by joining a Nigerian religious cult that beat women with horsewhips and whose leader required followers to call him daddy
This second episode follows Constance's life story, from her multimillionaire father leaving the family to live in a truck in Australia to her induction into a religious cult based in Lagos, Nigeria.
The cult was called SCOAN (The Synagogue Church of All Nations) and its leader, TB Joshua, targeted the UK for new, wealthy recruits by infiltrating Evangelical churches in the south of England.
Through her connections to one of these churches, Constance's mother, Virginia, was persuaded to travel to Nigeria with her daughter to the sect's compound in 2006.
Virginia believed TB Joshua, who styled himself in internet videos as a miracle healer, could rid her daughter of her 'rebellious spirits'.
Speaking to Trial Plus hosts Caroline Cheetham and Jack Hardy, author Matthew McNaught, who wrote a book about the cult and its abuse of British recruits, described how SCOAN operated and how Marten became affiliated with it.
'I became interested in SCOAN because I grew up in an Evangelical Church in Winchester called Emmanuel', McNaught told the podcast.
'Some church members came across this ministry in Nigeria – there were videos being sent around for publicity. They were incredibly graphic, very dramatic videos showing seemingly incredible things.
'I was very sceptical of TB Joshua from the start – the videos were so extreme and gross. You would see sores and bare breasts, gore and nudity that was incredibly hard to watch.
'As soon as people started becoming disciples – their personalities began to change. They withdrew from old friendships and people within my church started to become suspicious.
'Constance was in Lagos for six months. She got in contact with me in 2013 after I wrote a blog detailing TB Joshua's abuse. Her experience was the same as many others I had spoken too.
'She had gone out there a passionate, young Christian and had been pulled into this horrible community and dynamic.
'I believe she left because she had offended TB Joshua in some way, she was essentially kicked out.
'She told me she struggled for a long time afterwards and that she was keen to reconnect with those who had a similar experience.
'In my conversations with her, she came across really well… she wanted to help people to break through the isolation people suffered after being SCOAN. It feels sad to see that her life has taken this turn.'
On Monday, Marten and her lover Mark Gordon were convicted of killing their daughter, Victoria, after going on the run to stop her being taken into care. They will be sentenced for gross negligence manslaughter on September 15.
Bisola Johnson, who was close to the cult's leader and interacted with Constance Marten during the socialite's time in Nigeria, described some of the worst abuses of the organisation.
Bisola described herself as TB Joshua's 'right-hand woman' who feels deep regret for her role in his regime of terror.
She said: 'I worked as a video editor for SCOAN for many years. I was only there for about a week before TB Joshua invited me to his room and introduced sex to me.
'Most young girls there would visit his bedroom. People were called out of the dormitory at midnight to sleep with him or massage him as he lay there naked.
'There was verbal and emotional abuse. We would be beaten with horse whips if we didn't do something right. It was like a concentration camp.
'If you argued, you'd be ostracised – you'd not be given food, no one wanted to talk to you. It was mental torture.
'Constance got in contact with me in 2013, she said something had happened to her in SCOAN. Everybody had depression after leaving the group. You couldn't believe you'd accepted such mental torture.
'I wanted to help her, but I couldn't because she threatened to return with a body camera. I was afraid for her… she said she'd contact Al Jazeera. Before she even called them, I knew her body would disappear, and I didn't want to be involved in that.'
From his investigation into Marten's time in SCOAN, co-host Jack Hardy provided insight into the psychological damage the experience had on her.
'It's clear it completely shattered her', Hardy said.
'One friend who spoke to us told us she always used to be wild, but also happy, kind and buoyant.
'When she came back, she was darker – she found things more difficult. Another friend we spoke to put things more bluntly, TB Joshua ruined her life.'
To listen to the bombshell episode in full, subscribe to The Crime Desk, the home of arresting podcasts from The Daily Mail.
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