The Bishop of the African Church, Ondo
Central Missionary Diocese, Rt. Revd. Samuel Ojo, has lamented the
killing of the Chaplain of the church, Revd. David Ayeola.....
Ayeola was killed by suspected kidnappers in Ekiti State.
Ojo, who escaped abduction by a
whisker, said the gunmen were Fulani herdsmen, calling on the police to
bring the perpetrators to book.
PUNCH Metro had reported that Ayeola was kidnapped by the gunmen last Thursday while travelling with the bishop, his wife and the driver.
The kidnappers had demanded N100m ransom, but the church offered N500,000.
The police were attempting to rescue the 26-year-old when he was shot dead by the gunmen, who immediately fled the scene.
Ojo, who had gone into hiding after the
attack, told our correspondent on Monday that the death of the reverend
shook the church, adding that no service was held on Sunday in all the
parishes of the denomination in Ondo State.
Recounting the attack that led to the
capture of Ayeola, he said, “My in-law, an indigene of Ayegbaju Ekiti,
had died and my wife, the chaplain, as well as my driver followed me to
the village last Tuesday in preparation for the burial.
“On Thursday, we went to my hometown in
Imojo Ekiti. Around 6pm, we left the village to return to Ayegbaju,
venue of the burial. However, when we got to a place between Imojo and
Oye Ekiti, some masked gunmen emerged from the bush, blocked the road
and started shooting continuously.
“Our driver attempted to turn back, but
he discovered that members of the gang were also coming from the back.
He suddenly drove into the forest. Myself, my wife, the reverend, and
the driver ran into the bush. I told them to run for their lives and we
fled in different directions. I crawled in the forest for hours.”
He explained that he and his wife,
together with the driver, later emerged in another town at different
times, from where they informed villagers and relatives about the
incident.
He said late in the night, he was
informed that the kidnappers had called Akure, the church’s
headquarters, to demand the payment of the N100m ransom.
“Afterwards, the kidnappers started
calling me with the reverend phone number. From their accents, they
sounded like Fulani. They were threatening to kill him if we didn’t pay
the money. When I offered them N500,000, they insulted me and the
church.
“Meanwhile, commissioners of police in
Ekiti and Ondo states had deployed policemen in the three divisions
surrounding the place to look for him. The hunters association in the
town had also moved into the forest to search for him.
“On Saturday, I was called by the
kidnappers and I told them that we were looking for the money. By 11pm,
some indigenes who went to their farm, sighted three men with guns. They
saw the priest with them. They informed the police and that was how the
police and the hunters invaded the forest to rescue him,” he added.
He explained that the policemen and the
kidnappers engaged in a shootout, saying the police later backed off in
order not to endanger the life of the hostage.
Ojo said the gunmen shot and killed the priest.
“I ordained him in 2015. He was the best
at the college of theology in his set. He was an excellent and vibrant
preacher of the gospel. We are all saddened by his death. We want the
police to get the suspects and bring them to book. This is a great loss
to the church,” he added.
The Ekiti State Police Public Relations
Officer, Adeyemi Ademola, said the police had yet to arrest any suspect,
adding that investigations were ongoing.
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