The silence of a rural Friday night in Enugu State was shattered when gunshots rang out along Alumona-Eha Ndiagu road in Nsukka. By the time villagers rushed out, Rev. Fr. Mathew Eya, parish priest of St. Charles Catholic Church, lay dead in his vehicle—another victim of the faceless gunmen haunting the region. Shock swept across Nsukka Local Government Area as word spread that a Catholic priest had been assassinated in cold blood.
Governor Peter Mbah’s administration wasted no time in condemning the killing, describing it as cowardly and unacceptable. In a decisive move, the Enugu State Government announced a ₦10 million bounty for any credible information that will lead to the arrest of those behind the murder. The Commissioner for Information, Mr. Aka Eze Aka, told reporters that the government “will stop at nothing” to bring the culprits to justice, stressing that technology and intelligence units have already been deployed.
The slain priest, a native of Ugbaike in Enugu Ezike, Igboeze North, was known among his parishioners for his humility and service. His sudden death has left the Catholic community mourning deeply. “This is a direct attack on our faith and our people,” one church member told Lens News. “We cannot believe that a man who spent his life serving God could be killed like a criminal on the road.”
Security concerns have heightened in Nsukka and beyond, with residents now fearing that nowhere is safe—not even for men of the cloth. The Enugu State Government has provided a hotline, 07077451426, urging citizens to volunteer information. Police sources confirmed that patrols have been intensified, though no arrests have been made as of press time.
As the Catholic Diocese of Nsukka prepares to bury one of its own, the air is heavy with grief and anger. The question that lingers is whether ₦10 million will be enough to crack the silence of those who may know the killers—or if this priest’s blood will simply join the growing list of unsolved tragedies in Nigeria.
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