Nnewi, 27 December, 2024 / 11:48 PM
The Catholic Diocese of Nnewi in Nigeria is appealing for prayers for the repose of the soul of Fr. Tobias Chukwujekwu Okonkwo, who was reportedly murdered on Thursday, December 26 by yet to be identified persons.
In a statement shared with ACI Africa, the Chancellor of the Nigerian Catholic Diocese, Fr. Raphael Ezeogu, says the late Fr. Okonkwo “was shot dead by unidentified assailants, at lhiala, along Onitsha-Owerri Expressway around 7pm.”
“Fr. Tobias, a pharmacist, and native of Ekwulumili in Nnewi South Local Government Area, was Manager of the respective Schools of Nursing, Midwifery, and Medical Laboratory at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital Ihiala,” Fr. Ezeogu says about the late Nigerian Catholic Priest.
“We solicit your prayers and Holy Masses for his eternal joy,” the Chancellor of Nnewi Diocese says, adding that funeral arrangements will be communicated in due course.
He implores, “May Fr. Tobias rejoice in Paradise forever Amen. May God console the bereaved.”
Born in August 1984, the late Fr. Okonkwo was ordained a Priest in July 2015.
The West African nation of Nigeria has been battling with a surge of violence orchestrated by gangs, whose members carry out indiscriminate attacks, kidnapping for ransom, and in some cases, killing.
Boko Haram insurgency has been a major challenge in the country since 2009, a group that allegedly aims to turn Africa's most populous nation into an Islamic nation.
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