By SCM Reporter
TERRORISTS stormed Apostolic Church in a peaceful evening service in Nigeria Tuesday, gunning down a pastor before dragging dozens of terrified worshippers into the forest.
The bloodbath occurred at the Christ Apostolic Church in Eda Oniyo, Ekiti State, as families gathered for a “revival” prayer meeting. Witnesses described scenes of “pure carnage” as gunmen opened fire without warning, sending children and the elderly diving for cover under pews.
The presiding cleric, identified as Pastor Aregbe, was shot dead at point-blank range as he stood before his congregation.
The attack began at approximately 6:45 p.m. on Tuesday and lasted for several hours. Residents reported hearing “sustained gunfire” that echoed through the local government headquarters, forcing locals to abandon their homes and flee into the bush for safety.
One witness, who escaped the church, said:
”It was a scene of total panic. They didn’t care who they hit. They just wanted to kill and grab as many people as possible.”
While the exact number of those snatched remains unknown, sources fear the figure is “significant.” Families spent the night desperately calling loved ones, with reports suggesting that vulnerable children and elderly congregants are among those being marched through the dense Ekiti forests.
The Ekiti State Police Command has confirmed the horror. Police spokesperson Sunday Abutu stated that Commissioner Michael Falade has ordered an immediate “tactical deployment” to track the killers.
A massive rescue operation is currently underway involving:
The Nigerian Army
Amotekun Corps (Regional security)
Agro Rangers
Local Hunters and Vigilantes
Soldiers and local hunters are currently “combing the bushes” in a desperate race against time to find the captives before they are moved across state lines. No ransom demands have yet been made.
This latest atrocity highlights the spiralling security crisis in Nigeria, where kidnapping for ransom has become a “national industry.”
While Ekiti State has historically been seen as more stable than the war-torn North, “bandit” groups—often comprised of heavily armed criminal gangs and extremist splinter groups—have been pushing further South. These groups frequently target religious institutions, schools, and travellers, knowing that the emotional toll of such attacks often forces families and the government into paying massive ransoms.
This attack on a Christ Apostolic Church (CAC)—one of Nigeria’s largest indigenous denominations—is seen as a direct challenge to the regional security forces, who have been struggling to contain the “forest-dwelling” terrorists.
