Gunmen in the early hours of Sunday kidnapped a Catholic priest in Imo State.
It was gathered that the priest, Rev. Prof. Izu Marcell Onyeocha, was kidnapped around 7:00 am at Ihube Community in Okigwe Local Government Area of Imo State along Enugu -Port Harcourt Express Road.
The cleric said to be a lecturer in the Faculty of Humanities at the Imo State University, hails from Avuru Community in Ikeduru Local Government Area of the state.
The reverend father was said to be on a journey from Enugu to Owerri when the kidnappers abducted him.
An eyewitness said the reverend father was driving when the gunmen forcibly him stopped him, shooting sporadically into the air
No one could say if the priest was travelling alone in the car, but an eyewitness explained that the villagers heard some sporadic shooting and later confirmed the identity of the victim with his cassock and identity card.
Imo police spokesperson Orlando Ikeokwu, could not be reached for comments.
The incident is coming less than four months after the the Auxiliary Bishop of Owerri, Bishop Moses Chikwe, was abducted.
Just last Wednesday, a traditional ruler of Umueze autonomous community in Nguru, Aboh Mbaise Mbaise Local Government Area, Eze Charles Iroegbu, was kidnapped alongside five members of his cabinet and two palace guards.
They were released on Friday.