Tension as Unknown Gunmen Abduct Catholic Priest in Imo State
- A Catholic priest has been kidnapped by unknown gunmen in Imo state
- The southeast state has been going through security challenges in the last few weeks
- A recent military show of force and police deployment seem not to have deterred criminal elements in the state
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The Nation is reporting that unknown gunmen on Sunday morning, April 11 abducted a Catholic priest in Imo state.
According to the report, the priest was abducted around 7:00 a.m at Ihube community in Okigwe local government area of the state.
The victim, Rev. Prof. Izu Marcell Onyeocha, is said to be a lecturer in the Faculty of Humanities at the Imo State University, and a native of Avuvu community in Ikeduru local government area.
He was said to have been on transit from Enugu to Owerri when the incident happened along the popular Enugu-Port Harcourt expressway.
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Daily Trust quoted an eyewitness saying the cleric was driving when the gunmen forced him to stop by shooting sporadically into the air.
It is not clear if the priest was alone in the car, but the eyewitness said that the villagers heard some sporadic shooting and later confirmed the identity of the victim with his cassock and identity card.
The incident is coming days after a dire period of escalating insecurity in Imo that caused tension in the state.
To assure the people of their safety following coordinated attacks in Imo, the Nigerian Army began a show of force on Thursday, April 8 across the state.
Sources say the military exercise was intended to boost the morale of security agents and to restore the confidence of the people.
It is not clear how the abduction of the priest took place after the deployment of soldiers and police operatives in major flashpoints in the state.
In a related development, Dennis Amachree, a former assistant director of the Department of State Services (DSS), has stated that authorities in Imo state were warned about an impending attack but nothing was done to prevent them.
The former DSS chief said Governor Uzodinma was informed about the planned attacks about a week ahead, adding that there was enough actionable intelligence to organise everything that will thwart the operation.
Source: Legit.ng
