Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Abuja (Agenzia Fides) - Father Marcellus Nwaohuocha, a member of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI), kidnapped on June 17 after gunmen attacked the parish he serves, St. Paul Bomo Parish in the Archdiocese of Jos, in central-northern Nigeria, has been released .
According to information provided to Fides by OMI sources, their confrere was released this evening. There is no precise information on the circumstances of the release of the religious, but it seems that Father Nwaohuocha had to seek medical care. In a Sunday, June 18, statement, the order’s superior in Nigeria, Father Peter Klaver, said Nwaohuocha was taken away after the gunmen "forcefully gained entry into the parish house". "The kidnappers also shot a security guard, who died on the way to the hospital". We recall that the kidnapping of Father Nwaohuocha is only the latest in a long series of kidnappings of priests in Nigeria. The phenomenon of kidnappings has become a real "industry" in the country, with people from different social backgrounds being kidnapped almost daily throughout the Federation. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 20/6/2023)
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