Police free Catholic priest, seven others abducted in Benue

The Benue State Police Command has rescued a Catholic priest and seven other people abducted along the Ugbokolo–Ajegbe–Awume Road in Ohimini Local Government Area, arresting two suspects in connection with the kidnapping.

The priest, Rev. Fr. John Otache of the Otukpo Diocese, and the seven other victims were kidnapped last Tuesday while returning from a village market near Ipiga Village, police said.

The command’s spokesperson, DSP Peter Aondongu, disclosed this in a statement issued on Monday in Makurdi.

He said police operatives, working with the Police Mobile Force and the Benue State Civil Protection Guards, launched a coordinated rescue operation after receiving a report of the abduction.

According to the statement, two victims were rescued on October 16, while the remaining six were rescued on October 18, 2026.

The police identified the arrested suspects as Echefu Emmanuel and Obonyilor Emmanuel, adding that they were assisting investigators.

Aondongu said the rescued victims had been taken to the Federal University of Health Sciences Teaching Hospital, Otukpo, for medical examinations and treatment.

He added that security operatives had intensified efforts to arrest other members of the suspected kidnapping gang who fled.

The Commissioner of Police in Benue State, CP Cletus C. N. Nwadiogbu, commended the operatives for their response and thanked the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Rilwan Disu, and the Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of the Police Mobile Force for their support.

The command urged residents to provide credible information about suspicious movements and activities to assist security agencies in tackling kidnapping and other violent crimes.