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Akinwande Soji-Ojo
Gunmen have invaded a Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) in Ogun State, killing the pastor and abducting some worshippers.
The incident, it was gathered, occurred at Abule Ori in Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of the state in the early hours of Saturday.
Commander of Ogun State So-Safe Corps, Soji Ganzallo, confirmed the incident in a statement signed by the So-Safe Director of Information and Public Relations, Moruf Yusuf, on Sunday.
According to Ganzallo, the incident happened at about 12am on Saturday, July 1.
He said his officers rescued the seven church members and killed one of the kidnappers during a rescue operation.
“The special operation team of the Corps, Owode-Egba Zonal Command, under ACC Jimoh Rasaki Omoniyi, received a distress call that some of the members of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Desires of Nations Parish, under Ogun Province 22, Abule-Ori in Obafemi Owode Local Government Area were attacked during a vigil, while seven members of the church were kidnapped and the pastor killed.
“The officers of the Corps were charged to go after the suspects so as to rescue the victims unhurt. The officers swung into action immediately,” he said.
Ganzallo further disclosed that the efforts of the corps yielded a positive result as “the seven victims were rescued unhurt while one of the kidnappers was killed and many of the suspects sustained serious injury during a fire exchange.”
He added that the joint team of the police and the So-Safe Corps have launched a manhunt for the fleeing suspected kidnappers.
Ganzallo further said that the body of the dead kidnapper had been deposited in a nearby morgue.