- According to a statement from the Catholic Diocese of Yola, the priest was taken from his residence in the early hours of Tuesday, May 21, 2024
Gunmen, suspected to be terrorists and locally known as bandits, have kidnapped a Catholic priest, Rev. Father Oliver Buba, in Adamawa State.
The abduction occurred at St. Rita Catholic Church in Bare, within the Numan Local Government Area.
According to a statement from the Catholic Diocese of Yola, the priest was taken from his residence in the early hours of Tuesday, May 21, 2024.
Most Rev. Stephen Dami Mamza, the Catholic Bishop of Yola Diocese, signed the statement, urging people to pray for the safe return of the cleric.
“With sadness in our hearts, we write to inform the general public of the kidnap of one of our priests, Very Rev Father Oliver Buba. This sad event occurred during the early hours of today, 21st May, 2024 around 1:00am in the father’s rectory in St Rita’s Catholic Church Bare, in Numan Local Government of Adamawa State.
“We invite all Christ’s faithful and all men and women of goodwill to earnestly pray for quick and safe release of our priest,” Bishop Mamza’s statement read in parts.
The spokesperson for the Adamawa State Police Command, SP Suleiman Nguroje, confirmed the incident to SaharaReporters on Wednesday.
He said, “Our anti-kidnapping unit operatives are currently combing everywhere to rescue the cleric and to apprehend the miscreants.”