Bruce Morrison is a pastor in Nova Scotia, CA and a former Gospel for Asia supporter. In recent years, he has actively sought to bring to light GFA’s practices regarding fund raising and spending.
In this guest post, Morrison documents and describes the path of funds from Canadian donors to India and then the Wills Point, TX where they were spent to complete the GFA headquarters. The routing of money from Canadian donors who thought they were spending money to help poor India people to the Wills Point campus should be of interest to Canadian authorities. It makes me think that the source of funds to pay the court settlement will likely come from Canadian donors. Thanks to Rev. Morrison for this analysis.
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Bland Garvey CPA, from Richardson, TX, was the accounting and auditing firm that prepared the financial statements for GFA-US in 2013. In their audit notes they stated that $19.8 million was received from an anonymous donor to help fund the construction of the new GFA head office complex in Wills Point, TX. Later, it was disclosed that this money did not come from an anonymous donor, but instead came from Believers Church in India. Apparently, the auditors did not research the validity of what they had been told by GFA as one would expect, especially given the large amount of money involved.
The idea that money sent to India designated to spread the gospel and help the poor was later returned to the US for an expensive building project was disturbing to donors who learned of this.
Three years passed. In a US federal court hearing with plaintiffs Garland and Phyllis Murphy versus GFA defendants, a new and surprising revelation came to light. The $19.8 million for the US building project did not come from India – it came from Canada!
The court hearing took place on May 16, 2017. On Pg. 32 of the hearing transcript, Judge Timothy Brooks referred to the $20 million that came from GFA-India and the plaintiff’s claim that this money was donor restricted, diverted away from donor’s intents, without donor’s knowledge, and was therefore used fraudulently.
In response, to assure the Court that US funds were not misappropriated, Robert Mowrey, lawyer for the defendants, on page 32, lines 4-19, stated:
The documents – – your Honor, this gets a little complicated, but the documents we have provided to the plaintiffs show that the $20 million did not come from any US donors. This was $20 million that GFA-India had. It was their money. It was sitting in an account in Canada.
There were Canadian donors who had given this money to GFA-India to be used in various purposes. GFA-India directed that money to be given for the campus and then GFA-India fulfilled requests, the specific requests from internal money in GFA-India to replenish the Canadian account.
The bottom line here is that – – and I don’t know if the Court followed that but the bottom line here is that none of the $20 million came from any US donors.
To this the judge replied:
Well, it says in the second sentence that GFA staff confirmed that the funds relating to this donation were originally received by GFA as gifts restricted for the field.
Thus, Mr. Mowrey attempted to avoid allegations of fraud by saying that US-donor money was not used to help fund the new GFA head office. The judge did not agree and contended that even if the $20 million came from Canadian donor-restricted funds they were still – donor restricted! In other words, fraudulent use by GFA-US of Canadian funds was equally as fraudulent as if the money came from US donors. For the judge, the country of origin was not an issue.
As incredible as it seems, the lawyer for GFA implied that GFA-US did not defraud US donors, only Canadian donors – as if to say Canadian donors didn’t matter – it’s OK to cheat Canadians!
It is amazing beyond words that unsuspecting Canadians gave close to $20 million USD to help build an elaborate GFA complex in the USA, all the while believing their donations were spent in India.
The idea that GFA-India money sent from Canada was later replenished by GFA-India in India is absurd. Why not send the money to the US directly from India in the first place? Even if GFA did replenish the Canadian fund, it would still mean that Canadian donor money was not used as donors intended.
More Evidence of Possible Canadian Violations
Later, at a February 16, 2018 hearing, evidence was given that GFA World in Canada possibly breached laws set forth in the Criminal Code of Canada on many counts and might also be guilty of non-compliance with several CRA regulations. (GFA World was formerly known as GFA-Canada.)
On page 62, reference is made to GFA’s Indian bank account. Deposits to this account were made from GFA-Canada’s main bank account at a Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) in Hamilton, Ontario, and from there large sums were transferred into an “Indian account” which, in fact, was not located in India, but was actually just a separate account in the same RBC bank. GFA falsely led donors to believe that their donations had gone to India and were used for the reasons the gifts were given. The truth was exactly opposite to their claim – the money was still in Canada.
Also on page 62 of the transcript, reference is made to a letter sent by David Carroll from GFA-US to Sarah Billings of the RBC in Hamilton, requesting that she transfer $20 million from GFA’s Indian account to GFA’s head office in the US. On page 63, Mark. Stanley, lawyer for the plaintiffs, referred to a document showing that this money was received at the GFA head office in Texas.
Apparently, money sitting in the GFA-India RBC account grew to tens of millions of dollars and sat there for an undetermined number of years. These massive amounts of cash undoubtedly earned interest that aided growth. No one other than KP Yohannan and a few of his confidants knew of this. Apparently, even Canadian board members were not informed
A search of FC-6 sites In India FYE 3/31/2015 and FYE 3/31/2016 shows that for the first time, GFA entities in India reported that they received money from Canada
| CANADA TO INDIA FYE 3/31/2015 | ||||
| From | To | INR | USD | CAD |
| GFA-Canada | Ayana (GFA) | 658457500 | 10,798,703 | 12,247,310 |
| GFA-Canada | Believers Church | 933660000 | 15,312,024 | 17,366,076 |
| GFA-Canada | Last Hour | 109840000 | 1,801,376 | 2,043,024 |
| GFA-Canada | Love India | 110393900 | 1,810,460 | 2,053,327 |
| Total | 1812351400 | 29,722,563 | 33,709,737 | |
This is the first year that GFA entities in India reported receiving money from Canada. For the year that ended 12/31/2015, GFA-Canada stated on their T-3010 Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) 2015 Registered Charity Information Return, that they sent $11,105,054 to India. However, the amount reported as received by GFA entities in India from Canada for the period is vastly different – approximately three times the amount. Such discrepancies are common practice for GFA.
| CANADA TO INDIA FYE 3/31/2016 | ||||
| From | To | INR | USD | CAD |
| GFA World | Ayana (GFA) | 219660000 | 3,294,900 | 4,393,200 |
| GFA World | Believers Church | 1953422565 | 29,301,338 | 39,068,451 |
| GFA World | Last Hour | 614395950 | 9,215,939 | 12,287,919 |
| GFA World | Love India | 695898469 | 10,438,477 | 13,917,969 |
| Little Hills | Believers Church | 44077968 | 661,170 | 881,559 |
| Total from Canada | 4027454952 | 52,911,824 | 70,549,099 | |
The following year GFA-Canada, on their 2016 T-3010 Registered Charity Information Return, did not report to the CRA the huge $70,549,099 that was sent to India. They made no mention of their secret Little Hills Corporation. To say the least, their misstatements to the Canadian and Indian authorities are startling.
Follow the Money
In a recent article in the Christian Post, Francis Chan defended Gospel For Asia against allegations of fraud due to misappropriation of finances.
I have great respect for this man of God. He is a gifted Bible expositor and motivator to love and good works. Bible study groups in my church use his study materials and benefit greatly from them.
I described to an elder in my church the position Francis Chan has taken regarding GFA. He thought for a moment and then spoke of the gifts of the Spirit as described in the New Testament, comparing ministry gifts to gifts of administration. He indicated that there is no doubt that Francis Chan is a gifted minister but added that this does not mean he has the same strength when it comes to functions of administration. Discerning the true nature of GFA’s troubling practices, particularly those by KP Yohannan, cannot be made by one whose eyes are blinded to key facts, regardless of the esteem in which that person is held for other reasons.
I spent three weeks as a guest of GFA in India. I spoke in Kerala at their seminary and later to their head office staff. I toured with some of their leaders and spoke at their Bible training centre and at some of their churches in Tamil Nadu. I travelled to Sri Lanka to speak at their Bible training centre in that country. My daughter, Sharlene, attended the GFA seminary in Kerala for two years and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in the year 2000. The teaching staff were well qualified and spiritually minded Sharlene, along with two others, were the first students from the West to attend the seminary. Prior to this she served as a volunteer at GFA’s head office in Dallas, TX, for six months and after graduation she worked at GFA’s Canadian office. My church supported GFA for twenty years.
Nothing in our experience indicated that anything was wrong. I was a strong supporter of GFA and an avid advocate of their ministry encouraging others to support them. As far as I knew there was every reason to applaud voices such as Francis Chan’s in endorsing GFA.
However, the day came when I began to learn that things might not be what I had thought they were. I began to enquire.
Where Is The Field?
My first letter to GFA was dated March 27, 2015 and was followed by a series of letters. When I questioned why $108 million GFA-Canada reported to the CRA they had sent to India over an eight-year period was not reported to the Indian government that it was received, KP Yohannan responded by email and said:
In Canada, GFA India has a bank account owned and controlled by them. When all field donations come into our Canadian office, they are entered according to donor and designation preference by our staff at GFA Canada, and then deposited into the same bank account in Canada controlled by GFA-India. So once the funds are deposited into that account, they are considered received on the mission field and available to the field immediately.
That money deposited in a Canadian bank was considered to be “on the field” was both surprising and alarming. The full impact of this did not become apparent until the Murphy v. GFA court hearings took place and until GFA entities in India reported their 2015 and 2016 foreign incomes.
“Love covers a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8) is wonderfully true. It is also true that, “Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth” (1Corinthians 4:6).
Essential to true love is a love of truth, and valid discernment cannot be devoid of truth. The truth of GFA’s deceptive financial practices as evidenced by its use of Canadian donor money is but one example of a much greater picture that remains hidden from the view of many due to repeated denials of the truth.
I pray that someday soon this will end.
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When the recent court settlement says that all moneys sent “to the field” were used on the field, it doesn’t mean much when “the field” is this loosely defined. Donors still need to be wary.
There is no correlation between budget and effectiveness in evangelism or church planting. 1000s of new churches start every week round the globe, with no funds received and no funds spent. At the same time, certain organizations receive and dispense millions of dollars with few apparent ministry outcomes. Much of that money gets spent on salaries for church leaders who accept to change denomination, or on running bible schools whose graduates accomplish little or nothing beyond what an illiterate farmer does from love for Jesus. Some ministries that solicit funds in the West, applying proceeds to purchase farm land in the name of the ministry, which they turn round and let to peasants for rent.
One way to frame the story is that GFA is exploiting the poor and exploiting brown people as a way to raise money and build an empire. Old school imperialism and white supremacy strikes again.
Some people call it poverty porn. Kind of like the ads some “ministries” run on late night TV showing starving & disease ridden children. Pimping out these poor little ones to make a buck, just a few cents of which is actually used to help the kids.
And many of the same people who give to these large orgs also disparage the poor and houseless living right down the street from their McMansion.
So that’s what happened to the Canadian money. I knew it hadn’t shown up in India until 2015, when a whole bunch showed up all at once in Indian forms. I thought maybe it sat in the Hong Kong account we’ve heard about, but it was still in Canada!
Also, it’s very interesting that David Carroll was able to instruct the Canadian bank to make the transfer. If this bank account is controlled by the Indian organisation, why do U.S. staff have control over it?
GFA Canada has always been under the control of K.P. and the US Office. K.P. has always been Canadian Board chairman, US staff have served as Canadian Board members, and, when the former Canadian Director left around 2007, he was immediately replaced by an American from the USA office. The Canadian Board meets only once per year and NEVER without K.P. If K.P. is too busy to attend (which he usually is), the meeting is a quickie by tele-conference simply to get it documented they had one meeting during the year. All GFA Boards are really just puppet boards. During GFA Canada’s history, they had 3 Board members who asked lots of questions. All 3 were railroaded out as quickly as possible. I know all 3. One was a trained lawyer who worked as an insurance company investigator. He began scrutinizing, the financial statements and asking questions in the mid 2000’s. Not long after, he was shown the door.
YouKnowWho:
Is this the current (2019) Canadian board?
KP Yohannan – USA
Daniel Punnose – USA
Frederick H Schaphorst – USA
Vraj Lal L Raniga – Canada
Allan Jahnke – Canada
Oskar and Maria Zollinger – Canada
Unfortunately, it’s not illegal for a Canadian charity to have board members who are non-residents, nor is it illegal to have a caretaker rubber stamping puppet board that meets once a year.
Do you know if Pat Emerick is running the Cdn operation from Texas?
I do not know the current board make up since I quit supporting them nor do I have much interest in their operations.
Given that the CRA (Canada Revenue Agency) Charity Directorate investigators were contacted by concerned people – it seems it’s come to naught. CRA does not make a public statement if a charity is cleared, and there has been nothing from them otherwise.
Grrrrrr.
It’s possible the CRA is working with the India government and has been watching the US case come to it’s conclusion, but I’ve lost hope that GFA World (Canada) is going to be held accountable. Perhaps Canada needs to revisit it’s tax code and tighten up charity rules.
The RCMP investigation would have been under The Criminal Code of Canada, the CRA has the real clout when it comes to charities. Crickets from both.
My respect for Bruce Morrison continues to climb. He has been tenacious and faithful, and every concerned Canadian donor owes him a debt of gratitude.
Steve Buist of The Hamilton Spectator did a write-up of the US settlement.
https://www.thespec.com/news-story/9205335-hamilton-based-charity-settles-lawsuit-for-37-million/
According to Buist, Pat Emerick is still the Canadian director.
So, Emerick is running the Canadian operation from Texas?
Buist is a terrible journalist. All he did was borrow from an article done in the Spectator 3 to 4 years ago and combine it with a synopsis of the settlement. The “Hamilton Speculator” at its best!
Lol.
Steve Buist wrote that article you are referencing – March 19th, 2016 which was also run in The Toronto Star.
Running a straight piece on the US court case back referencing a prior article you’ve written with the local/national angle doesn’t make someone a terrible journalist.
Terrible journalists don’t win 4 National Newspaper Awards, been named Canada’s Investigative Journalist of the Year 3 times, or win 5 Ontario’s Journalist of the Year.
Bottom line YouKnowWho – right now there is no movement with GFA World (Canada). Officials are mum, and if anyone else such as yourself has verifiable information/facts, they need to speak up. Journalists don’t work in a vacuum.
Out of curiousity – what do you think Buist should/could have written?
The Buist article is terrible, sloppy journalism borrowing from an article he did 3 years ago. I don’t care what awards he’s won, this one was sloppy and careless. Buist has done things like this in the past. Make a few phone calls and reference it. Do a little bit of digging. This article was flat out lazy work on the part of Buist. I live in Hamilton and it’s a running joke amongst Hamiltonians calling the paper “The Speculator”. Remember all news agencies are for profit businesses. If they can make a buck selling crap to customers, they will do it, selling you dog poop and calling it candy.
I dont understand , after knowing all these things why do people support GFA. Pure grace of God and support of the western sponsors that GFA is blessed this much. But KP said gfa is no longer want to follow western theology but eastern theology. I would request all the sponsors who sponsored and stopped , and who are continuously supporting gfa… please understand that gfa has gone too away from bible and went after traditions. But there are poor missionaries are lacking good leadership..dont know what to… the sponsors who started the good work i request you to finish it well. And find some ways to lead them spiritually.. it will be great help to them.my heart aches by looking at their situations.if you want any details about gfa and other things pls feel free to msg me…
I too don’t understand why people still support them after they know the information. I should not be surprised though. Hopefully the Canadian authorities will take a look in to this.
Walter, Canadian authorities have supposedly been looking at GRA World (Canada) for about 4 years.
so sad that GFA and many other so called “christian” organizations or churches have strayed so far from Jesus.
fame and fortune has blinded many and caused ears to go deaf, even as their actions are justified by themselves and others as “being for the kingdom of God”
And people continue to give money, as a full court press is on to hide the truth.
None of this comes as a surprise anymore to me. I figured out some time ago as I was processing both this reality, and the reality that Voice of the Martyrs is also a scam with the only thing publicly known about them is that they have had multiple leaders who are child molesters, that Christian International Ministry of all kinds are ripe places for fraud. As I have watched this unfold over four years now I have seen that few of the commenters here apparently have chosen to search deeply to see what the bigger, deeper problem is. I have come to the conclusion that in the West we have grown so materialistic and Mammon centered that in the minds of most (Charity = Mammon.) The two are defined in pretty much completely equal terms inside our heads these days.
This cannot be the way that God sees this issue, however, for Jesus plainly stated that you cannot serve both of these for you will choose one to love and, by default, despise the other. Charity in the New Testament was not Mammon centered. It was centered on directly helping people who were in grave circumstances. And specifically those who were starving or in extreme need. These people were “in distress” according to the New Testament. I believe that in the minds of most, and even Christians, the heart of what God means by the word has been replaced by something Jesus called “unrighteous Mammon.” So instead of rolling up our sleeves and getting dirty with actual people in distress around us, we now throw Mammon at the “distress” issue and want to hire middlemen to do the work for us. This is not charity. This has created huge opportunities for liars and thieves. There is something lazy about this when so many of us have so much materially. Throwing dollars at these two particular ministries as I once did has not helped anyone except for conmen and child molesters doing evil. But it is so much easier to write a check and pat yourself on the back by thinking you are doing “Charity.”
This has resulted personally in what I would call “repentance.” Instead of writing checks to middlemen that I wonder if I can trust, I am personally involved in trying to help brothers and sisters who are in very real distress. I write this in order to encourage others to think deeply about this issue. You do not have to agree with me 100% but it would be wise to consider the bigger issues for the deception always lies in the assumptions that we have. When we take anything as a basic assumption as true when it is not by God’s point of view, then we become very easily deceived. That is just the way this has worked for me and the others I see around me. This is how I was deceived by GFA and VOM. This is also how I got deceived in other ways inside The Church too. The assumptions were faulty and so too were the results.