Murder of Catholic priest: Enugu Police promise air surveillance to fight ‘bandits’

Following the killing of a Catholic priest, Rev. Fr. Anthony Offu in Enugu by suspected Fulani herdsmen on Thursday, the Enugu State Security Committee has resolved to launch air surveillance along the Awgu sector of the Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway where “bandits have launched ferocious attacks on motorists and villagers in their farms.

The state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Suleiman Balarabe, who briefed newsmen at the end of a security meeting held at Government House Enugu on Friday, said the surveillance has become necessary because of several reports of kidnapping and highway robbery, which climaxed yesterday in the killing of Fr. Anthony Offu.

“Helicopters will now overfly the dangerous Nkanu-Udi-Awgu axis where the bandits have of late been terrorizing motorists and villages going to their farms,” he said.

The Commander also said the idea of deploying forest guards to comb the forests of the South East is a welcome development.

The meeting was interrupted by hundreds of Catholic priests from the Enugu Diocese who stormed the Government House placards to protest the killing of their colleague, Rev. Fr. Offu.

They were met on the steps of Lion Building, the government house, by Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi.

The Catholic priest will be the third victim of violent attacks on priests from the diocese and the second priest to die from the attacks in recent months.

Offu was killed while returning from a visit to a brother priest at Agbudu in Awgu Local Government Area.