Ayeola, the bishop, Samuel
Ojo; and the bishop’s wife were travelling to Abeokuta, Ogun State, from Imojo
Ekiti, Ekiti State, when they were waylaid by the gunmen on the road.
The chaplain to the
chaplain to the Bishop of the African Church, Ondo Central Diocese, Revd David
Ayeola, who was kidnapped days ago, have been killed.
The bishop, his wife,
Ayeola, and the driver of the car were said to have fled into the bush.
A source said, “While
others escaped, the chaplain was caught and abducted by the gunmen.
The gunmen shot Ayeola dead
in a botched rescue operation after the church declined to pay the N100m ransom
the kidnappers demanded.
The African Church had
offered N500,000 instead.
PUNCH Metro learnt that the
remains of the victim had been deposited in a morgue.
“They later contacted the
headquarters of the church at Akure and demanded N100m. The church,
however, offered them N500,000, which
they turned down.”
Another top leader of the
African Church said the church’s leadership involved the Ekiti State Police
Command in the rescue of the priest.
He explained that while
trying to buy time with negotiation, the police also closed in on the hideout
of the abductors.
“On Saturday, the police
swooped on the hideout of the kidnappers and there was an exchange of gunfire
between them.
“The police team was
overpowered and the kidnappers decided to shoot the priest. He was shot in the
side; they (kidnappers) left his corpse behind. The family has taken the body
to the morgue,” he added.
When contacted, the
Diocesan Public Relations Officer, Alex Akande, said he could not talk about
the incident, adding that the church’s leadership would meet on Monday (today).
He said, “The case is with
the police. I don’t want to divulge too much information because I need to get
clearance from the church’s headquarters. We will be having a meeting tomorrow
(Monday); maybe I can talk after that.”
PUNCH Metro learnt that
Ayeola was not married and he had only recently finished from the seminary.
A check on his Facebook
page showed that although he rarely used social media, he sometime waxed
philosophical.
“People may say many things
about you, but what you say about yourself matters most. I know I shall
accomplish the purpose of God for my life in the land of the living in Jesus
Name. Do have a happy night rest friends,” his last post read.
The Ekiti State Police
Public Relations Officer, Adeyemi Ademola, confirmed the death.
He said, “Yesterday evening
(Saturday), we received intelligence about where the reverend was being kept by
the kidnappers. The police and some hunters went to rescue him. We discovered
that the place was a very thick forest.
“When the kidnappers
noticed that the police and the hunters were coming, they shot the reverend and
escaped.
“We went after them for a
while, but the team had to turn back when it was getting dark. This was to
avoid endangering the lives of members of the team in a terrain that the
kidnappers may be more familiar with. We took the reverend to a general
hospital, but sadly, we lost him.”
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