Editor’s note: At the conclusion of this report is a photograph of Fr. Sylvester Okechukwu, which was taken after he was killed. The photograph is unsettling. The Pillar has chosen to publish it, as a record of the violence perpetrated against Fr. Okechukwu, and against hundreds of Christians kidnapped and killed in northern Nigeria. Readers should exercise prudent discretion before viewing.
While Christians were receiving ashes last Wednesday to begin Lent, news broke in Nigeria that a priest had been brutally murdered by kidnappers, who had stormed his rectory the night before and kidnapped him.
The Diocese of Kafanchan in north central Nigeria has since expressed outrage over the kidnapping and murder of Fr. Sylvester Okechukwu, 44, by unknown assailants. And according to experts, the killing points to the ongoing situation of violence facing Christians in Nigeria.
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“With deep sorrow and righteous indignation, I condemn in the strongest terms the relentless and tragic wave of kidnappings targeting priests, pastoral agents, and the faithful,” Bishop Julius Kundi said in a March 7 press conference which expressed outrage “over the kidnapping and brutal murder” of his priest.
According to sources in the diocese, Okechukwu was bound by his kidnappers, and his head was beaten with a blunt object until his skull split.
Kundi described the assassination as “the horrifying abduction and gruesome murder of my son,” insisting that it “is a cruel assault on our faith, our humanity, and the peace of our State.”
Okechukwu’s death is “not just an attack on the Church but a direct affront to the values of justice, peace, and human dignity” the bishop added. “The diocese is engulfed in anguish, and the land is heavy with anger.”
Kundi called for justice, and urged Nigerians to remember that Okechukwu’s murder “is not an isolated tragedy.”
The Bishop of Kafanchan noted other violence against Christian in his diocese: the murder of catechist Raymond Ya’u on July 21, 2021, the kidnapping and murder of Fr. Johnmark Cheitnum in July 2022, the killing of 25-year-old seminarian Naaman Stephen Ngofe in September 2023, and the disappearance of catechist Istifanus Katunku, who was abducted on July 4, 2024, and whose whereabouts remain unknown.
In addition to that violence, the bishop noted “the abduction of so many lay faithful” in the region, “where criminals continue to wreak havoc on innocent lives.”
“The outrageous ransoms demanded their release not only devastate families but also pose a severe threat to food security and the general well-being of the people in Kafanchan Diocese and Southern Kaduna as a whole,” the bishop said.
The violence comes amid a rise of violence and lawlessness across Nigeria, especially in the country’s regions. Some attacks can be attributed to Islamic militants intent on securing influence in the region, while armed criminal gangs have also taken advantage of reduced police presence in the area.
In the last month, six priests, a seminarian, and several parishioners have been kidnapped across northern Nigeria, with many still in captivity, their abductors not yet identified.
In 2024, 13 priests were kidnapped across Nigeria. And according to one recent analysis, nearly 200 priests and seminarian have been kidnapped in Nigeria since 2015, with at least 13 of them killed while abducted — in addition to others killed amid gang or militia attacks on churches and villages.
Kundi explained that kidnappings — in which ransoms are extracted from communities for release of kidnapped people — have long-term economic consequences.
“The kidnappings have left communities in fear, disrupted livelihoods, and intensified economic hardship in an already struggling region,” Kundi said.
Noting that six people had been kidnapped in recent weeks from St. Matthew’s parish in the village of Anchuna, the bishop said that: “We cannot remain silent as our people live in fear, uncertain of what the future holds.”
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Last month, in the early hours of Feb. 6, Fr. Cornelius Manzak Damulak, a student at Veritas University in Abuja, was kidnapped at his residence.
While coming back from a hospital visit Feb. 12, Fr. Livinus Maurice of St. Patrick’s Church in Isokpo in Rivers State, was kidnapped with two parishioners.
On Feb. 19, a priest of the Jos archdiocese, Rev. Fr. Moses Gyang, was kidnapped from his parish residence of St. Mary Maijuju Parish alongside both his niece and Nyam Ajiji, the parish council chairman. Aijiji has been reportedly killed. While there are rumors that Gyang and his niece have been released, the Archdiocese of Jos has not yet confirmed their release.
Father Abraham Saumam and Fr Matthew Dusemi were kidnapped Feb. 22 from the parish rectory at Gwedda Mallam in Adamawa State. The two priests have since been resued.
On March 3, gunmen attacked St. Peter Catholic Church in Iviukhua-Agenebode, Edo State, abducting Fr. Phillip Ekweli and a seminarian. They have not yet been released.
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For his part, Kundi said last week that government officials have to tackle the rising tide of violence in the country.
“We demand that the government and security agencies take immediate and decisive action to bring the perpetrators of these heinous crimes to justice.”
“The blood of Fr. Sylvester Okechukwu and all other innocent souls cry out for justice.”
Okechukwu was born Dec. 11, 1980, and ordained for the Kafanchan diocese on Feb. 11, 2021. The priest survived previous abductions in 2022 and 2025, before he was killed this month.
