Jacob Wodi Hulobu, a resident pastor of the Living Faith Church in Aloko-Oganenigwu, Dekina Local Government Area of Kogi State, has been reportedly killed by gunmen.
It was learnt that the gunmen, suspected to be herdsmen, invaded the town on Sunday.
According to a source, the pastor had escaped with some of his members to a safer area when they struck during the early morning service, but went back to check the state of the church after the attack, when the invaders shot and killed him.
“He escaped during the church service in the morning. He thought everything was calm and went back to check if the church was touched, when he was killed,” the source told Daily Post.
Hulobu who is survived by his wife and a child, is said to have organised a crusade programme billed to take place between April 13 and 15 in the church before the incident.
Kogi State has become a centre of renewed gunmen’s violence recently.
SaharaReporters on Monday reported that gunmen suspected to be herders killed several people and burned houses during a fresh attack in Oganenigu community in the Dekinal local government area of Kogi State.
A resident of the town who spoke to SaharaReporters on Sunday night lamented that the herders’ attacks had become routine, with no intervention from the government or security forces.
He said many people had been displaced to the neighbouring communities because of the attacks.
Yusuf Ojuwele and James Adah, the All Progressives Congress chairman for Oganenigu Ward were reportedly among those killed in the attack.
Governor Yahaya Bello had called for calm in the aftermath of the attacks, describing “the vile and satanic attack as a calculated assault on the peace-loving people of Oganenigu who have enjoyed relative peace and security for years”.
“My administration will continue to pursue crisis entrepreneurs in the state and ensure that those involved are held accountable under the law,” he said.
Bello had promised that his administration would devote resources to tracking down criminals and making them pay for their crimes.
