Kidnapped Nigerian Priest and Seven Others Freed After Five Days; Two Suspects Arrested

A Catholic priest kidnapped in Nigeria's Benue State has been freed along with seven other captives, and police have arrested two suspects linked to the case, according to reporting by the Christian Post on October 26, 2026.

The Rev. John Inalegwu Otache, parish priest of St. Margaret's Church in Ajegbe-Awume, was seized with seven others and held for five days, according to the Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need. He was abducted on October 13 while returning from Otukpo along the Otobi Amejo-Ajegbe road in the Ohimini local government area, Infovaticana reports.

Officers of the Benue State Police Command, working with local vigilantes, freed all eight captives and arrested the two suspects on October 18, according to local media cited by the Christian Post. All those rescued were taken to the university hospital in Otukpo for medical checks. Authorities have not publicly identified the kidnappers, and no further details about the suspects or any charges have been reported.

The Catholic Diocese of Otukpo, where Father Otache serves, welcomed his return and thanked Catholics and others in the region for their prayers and support. Diocesan chancellor the Rev. Joseph Itodo said in a statement that the diocese is announcing the news "with hearts full of joy and thanksgiving to God." Bishop Michael Ekwoyi Apochi of Otukpo thanked clergy, members of religious orders, lay Catholics, and others who prayed for the priest and stood with him during his captivity.

Members of Father Otache's parish in Ajegbe-Awume had prayed and called for his safe return. Father Itodo urged Catholics to keep praying for the many people still held by criminal gangs elsewhere in Nigeria, saying, "We pray that God will preserve us from all evil and restore sanity to our country Nigeria."

The rescue comes against a wider pattern of kidnappings in Nigeria, where criminal gangs have increasingly seized people for ransom in parts of the country. Another priest, the Rev. Emmanuel Ezema of the Diocese of Zaria, remains missing after armed men abducted him from his home in St. Peter's Parish in Rumi, Kaduna State, on December 2, 2025. There has been no word of his release, and his diocese has condemned the kidnapping and asked for prayers for his return.

Priests, seminarians, and lay Catholics have been kidnapped in several regions of Nigeria. In August, a seminarian abducted from the bishop's residence in Otukpo escaped his captors after more than two weeks. In February, attackers abducted the Rev. Nathaniel Asuwaye, a priest of the Diocese of Kafanchan, from his parish in Kaduna State; he regained his freedom in May.

The kidnappings have prompted repeated calls for authorities to act. In July, Cardinal John Onaiyekan, the retired archbishop of Abuja, urged the Nigerian government to take steps to end the kidnappings and said authorities "have no excuse" for failing to protect the population. Benue State lies in Nigeria's Middle Belt, the band of states between the mainly Muslim north and the mainly Christian south.