The Catholic Diocese of Otukpo in Benue State has announced the abduction of one of its seminarians, Mr. Kelvin Ochai, describing the incident as a deeply troubling development.
The announcement was made in a statement issued by the Diocesan Chancellor, Rev. Fr. Joseph Aboyi Itodo, who disclosed that the incident occurred on Wednesday at the Bishop’s Residence in Asa III, Otukpo.
According to the statement, the Bishop of the Diocese, Most Rev. Michael Ekwoyi Apochi, expressed profound sadness over the disappearance of the seminarian and appealed to members of the Catholic faithful and all people of goodwill to pray for his safe and speedy release.
The Diocese said it was intensifying efforts to secure Ochai’s freedom while also remembering other victims currently in the custody of kidnappers across Nigeria in its prayers.
Church authorities, however, did not provide further details on the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Meanwhile, the Benue State Police Command says it has not yet established that the seminarian was abducted.
The Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Orchia Aondona, stated that information available to the command indicates that the seminarian left his residence to take a bath at another location but did not return.
According to the police spokesman, the case is presently being treated as that of a missing person rather than a confirmed kidnapping.
“The report in our possession is that the seminarian went out to take his bath, and the place where he went is different from where he resides. After some time, he could no longer be found. For now, it is still a case of a missing person,” he said.
DSP Aondona also revealed that reports suggesting there had been an attempted abduction at the Bishop’s residence about two weeks earlier were never officially reported to the police.
He explained that the command only became aware of the alleged earlier incident after the seminarian’s disappearance.
The police spokesman assured that investigations were ongoing to determine the exact circumstances surrounding the disappearance and to establish whether any criminal activity was involved.
The incident has heightened concerns over insecurity in parts of Benue State, where cases of kidnapping and violent crimes have continued to pose serious challenges to residents and security agencies.
