On Saturday, gunmen stormed the God’s Doing Healing and Deliverance Ministry in Orodo, Mbaitoli Local Government Area of Imo State, killing one youth leader, Samuel Ogbonna, and kidnapping two others. Ogbonna, who was the owner of the Feel at Home restaurant and a close aide to the church’s general overseer, Evangelist Maduabuchi Ernest, also known as “Dibia Ekpere,” was shot dead during the attack.
According to an anonymous source, the attackers, numbering about eight, arrived at the church in two vehicles—a red Highlander and a black Lexus sedan—around 4 p.m. during a church program. The gunmen demanded to see the general overseer, but when they were told he hadn’t arrived, they grew angry and ordered the congregation to lie face down. The assailants then robbed the worshippers of their belongings, including phones, bags, and cash.
As the gunmen left the church, they fired several gunshots, one of which fatally struck Ogbonna. He had initially left the church to run errands but was caught in the attack as he returned. After attempting to escape into nearby bushes, he was pursued and shot multiple times.
The gunmen also abducted two members of the congregation, a man and a nursing mother, but later released them along the Owerri-Orlu expressway after fleeing in the church’s owner’s car. The incident has left the community in fear, with many residents fleeing for their safety and the church now closed.
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