A tragic incident unfolded in the Eha-Ndiagu community of Eha-Alumonah, located in the Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State, where gunmen fatally shot a Catholic priest, Rev. Fr. Mathew Eya.
The attack occurred on Friday evening as Fr. Eya, who served as the parish priest of St. Charles Catholic Church, was making his way back from Enugu.
Eyewitness accounts indicate that the assailants, riding a motorcycle, targeted his vehicle near a construction site for a Type C hospital. They fired at the car’s tyres to disable it, then approached and unleashed a barrage of shots at close range.
While there were initial theories suggesting a possible connection to kidnapping, the circumstances strongly pointed to an assassination, as the priest was alone in the vehicle and not taken hostage.
“He was returning from Enugu when the motorcycle gunmen intercepted him near the hospital project site. They shot at his tyres, causing the vehicle to halt, then moved in closer to fire multiple rounds. This does not appear to be a kidnapping,” a source revealed.
Rev. Fr. Eya was originally from Ugbaike in the Enugu Ezike area of Igbo-Eze North Local Government.
As of this report, neither the police nor the Catholic Diocese of Nsukka has released an official statement regarding the incident.
