BBB lists latest scam alerts

FW Daily News, Indianna/July 1, 2007

People United for Christ is soliciting donations via direct mail, television and its Web site in exchange for prayer. At ministry conventions during the 1980s, the ministry's founder, Peter Popoff, routinely and accurately stated home addresses and illnesses of audience members — a feat he wanted people to believe was due to divine revelations, the BBB says.

However, aides actually had gathered the info during earlier conversations with the audience. Popoff would simply listen to these promptings with an in-ear receiver and repeat what he heard back to the crowd. He also featured wheelchair-bound audience members who were miraculously healed. It was later shown that these people only pretended they couldn't walk. Popoff is now resuming his faith healing sessions on late night TV. The BBB has challenged this organization's 501c3 IRS charity status.