Gunmen abduct pastor during service

Gunmen invaded the Resurrection Parish of The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) at Kabba junction in Lokoja, Kogi State, and abducted the church pastor while preaching on the pulpit.

The pastor, identified as Ayo Funsho Raphael, according to an eyewitness, was taken away in the presence of church members during service.

It was, however, gathered by Tribune on Tuesday, that the pastor had barely stood by the pulpit when the gunmen struck.

The development was said to have caused pandemonium in the church as members ran helter skelter during the invasion of the church.

Eyewitness said the gunmen started shooting into the air to scare away people when they arrived.

Some of the members of the gang were said to have gone straight to the direction of the pulpit, where the pastor was standing and took him away from the church.

The gunmen were said to have later opened a line of communication and contacted the church elders on Monday evening demanding N50 million as ransom before the pastor can be released‎.

However, the Kogi State command of the Nigeria Police said it was not aware of the incident.

The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the command, Williams Aya, an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), said the headquarters was yet to be informed by the officer in charge of the area.