Man Opens Fire On Churchgoers, Kills Mother-Of-Seven In Ebonyi

A 55-year-old woman was on Sunday shot dead while on her way to the church.

Mrs Chinyere Agwu, who is the mother of seven children, and two other women were going to the Solution Ground International Ministries located on Okigwe Road, Amasiri, in the Afikpo North Local Government Area of Ebonyi State around 5am on Sunday, March 24, 2019, when the incident happened.

On approaching the church door, the women were said to have spotted a man, whom they identified as Paul, and he allegedly opened fire on them.

The General Overseer of the Church, Pastor Michael Uche, told newsmen that he was alerted to the incident by one of the victims, who ran home after the gun attack.

Uche said the suspect’s target was his mother and not the late Agwu.

He added that the suspect had threatened to deal with his mother over an alleged squabble between her and the suspect’s wife.

Corroborating the story, an assistant pastor in the church, Emmanuel Onyiagha, said the congregation resorted to self-help after failing to secure the assistance of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad in the area to rescue the victim.

Onyiagha said Agwu was later rushed to the Mater Hospital in Afikpo, where it was discovered that she had suffered multiple bullet wounds before she died.

The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Mrs Loveth Odah, said the suspect, who was identified as Paul Okoudu, had been arrested.

According to the police spokesperson, the suspect will be charged to court if investigation links him to the crime.

Odah stated,

“The report before me says he used a locally-made pistol to shoot the woman. “We are calling on Ebonyi residents to come up with useful information on anyone with criminal record, who is bent on committing criminality in the state.”