Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Abuja (Agenzia Fides) – Catholic priest Matthew Eya was killed violently in a road ambush in Nigeria. He was shot dead on the evening of September 19 on the Eha-Alumonah-Eha-Ndiagu road in Nsukka County, Enugu State, southeastern Nigeria. According to local media reports, Father Eya, who was parish priest of St. Charles Church in Eha-Ndiagu, was the victim of a full-scale ambush. The priest was returning to his parish when at least two armed men on a motorcycle overtook his car, shot the tires, and, after forcing the car to stop, shot him several times at close range. If the sequence of events recounted by witnesses is correct, this was not a failed kidnapping attempt, but a targeted assassination. The news of the Catholic priest's murder was confirmed by the Chancellor of the Diocese of Nsukka, Msgr. Cajetan Iyidobi, in a message to the faithful, which read: "Deeply shocked, filled with pain and sorrow, and with firm hope for the resurrection of the dead, I must announce the tragic death of another of our brothers, Father Matthew Eya." Meanwhile, the police have launched a search for Father Eya's killers and have arrested 38 people, some of whom are suspected of being responsible for the murder. The Enogu State government has offered a reward of 10 million naira (approximately €5,700) for the priest's killers. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides, 22/9/2025)
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