Gunmen invade Ekiti church, kill pastor, kidnap worshippers

The gunmen reportedly stormed the church located on the outskirts of the community during a crusade, killed the presiding pastor and abducted several worshippers.

Residents of Eda Oniyo Ekiti in Ilejemeje Local Government Area of Ekiti State were thrown into confusion on Tuesday evening as gunmen invaded a church during an open-air crusade service.

It was learnt that the gunmen who stormed the church located on the outskirts of the community while the crusade was ongoing, killed the presiding pastor and abducted several worshippers.

Sources in the community disclosed that the gunmen, who were heavily armed, operated for several minutes before kidnapping an undisclosed number of worshipers into a nearby forest.

A source within the community, who spoke to journalists in confidence for fear of being victimised, said the gunmen invaded the crusade ground in large numbers and opened fire during the attack.

“This evening, some gunmen invaded a church around the outskirts of Eda Oniyo during a church programme. They abducted several worshippers, including elderly persons and children.

“They shot the pastor and took the worshippers into the forest. The attackers came in large numbers and were heavily armed,” the source said.

Although the exact number of victims could not be confirmed as of the time of filing this report, the incident has thrown the community into panic and fear.

Reacting to the development, a top government official and member of the state’s security committee who spoke under anonymity because he was not authorised to speak, confirmed the attack.

He said that security operatives had already been deployed to the area and were on the trail of the attackers, expressing confidence that the victims would be rescued unharmed.

“Yes, some worshippers were kidnapped in Eda Oniyo today, but security agencies are involved. The government has deployed security operatives to the area and they are already on the trail of the attackers,” the source said.

Efforts to get reaction from the police at the time of filing the report were unsuccessful as calls and messages sent to the Command’s Public Relations Officer, Sunday Abutu, had not been answered.