The kidnapped priest of the Otukpo Catholic Diocese in Benue State, Rev. Father David Echioda, on Wednesday, March 4th, 2020 released by his abductors. Echioda was abducted in the afternoon on Sunday, March 1st, 2020 by unknown gunmen at Alan-Akpa road in Otukpo Local Government Area (L.G.A.) of the state, while coming back from Utonkon in Ado L.G.A., where he travelled to perform a special mass.

On Wednesday, the Otukpo Catholic Diocese’s Director of Communications, Reverend Father John Okopopu confirmed to our correspondents in Makurdi that the priest’s captors set him free him without demanding or collecting any ransom. Okpopu said the abducted priest was not the kidnappers’ intended target and that was why they set him free him at 6.30 am on Wednesday.

He explained that the captors informed the priest that they mistook him to be a top politician of whom they got information was going to ply the route. He added that the priest, who was returning to Otukpo before the incident, ran into the kidnappers numbering six (6) and armed with sophisticated weapons.

The abductors said that he was not their target and that they had information that a top person was going to pass the road around 2pm

Unfortunately, when the gunmen could not see their target they began to rob and the priest was the first to run into them and they dispossessed him of his belongings including the church money.

They forced him into his vehicle, three men in the front, three at the back while one was searching the priest. All of them were speaking Hausa; the priest understands Hausa and communicated with them in Hausa. They tortured and later released him with an apology that he was not their target and gave him N4,000 to take care of himself,

Okpopu narrated.

Justin Nwosu

Justin Nwosu is the founder and publisher of Flavision. His core interest is in writing unbiased news about Nigeria in particular and Africa in general. He’s a strong adherent of investigative journalism, with a bent on exposing corruption, abuse of power and societal ills.