Jos, 13 November, 2024 / 8:54 pm (ACI Africa).
The Parish Priest of St. Theresa's Catholic Parish of the Catholic Diocese of Okigwe in Nigeria, who was kidnapped on November 5 while returning from pastoral ministry has regained freedom.
In a Tuesday, November 12 letter shared with ACI Africa, the Chancellor of the Nigerian Catholic Diocese, Fr. Princewill Iwuanyanwu, confirmed the release of Fr. Emmanuel Azubuike who had been held captive for a week.
He thanked the people of God for their “fervent prayers and show of love” towards Fr. Azubuike, who the Chancellor says was released in the early hours of Monday, November 11.
On November 5, Fr. Azubuike was abducted near St. Theresa's Church in Obollo, located in the Isiala Mbano Local Government Area of Imo State, in southern Nigeria.
Fr. Azubuike’s abduction follows a series of other kidnappings that have targeted members of the Clergy in Africa’s most populous nation.