Rev. Father Stephen Echezona has been rescued unharmed after being held hostage by armed criminals, thanks to a coordinated effort by a Joint Security Team comprising the police, military, civil defence, and local vigilante groups from Ichida and Ihiala.
According to a statement by SP Tochukwu Ikenga, the Police Public Relations Officer for the Anambra State Police Command, Father Echezona was abducted at a fuel station in Ichida by armed men driving a white Lexus SUV without a license plate.
Security operatives engaged the assailants in a gunfight, forcing them to abandon their vehicle in an attempt to escape. However, the criminals took the priest with them as they fled the scene.
Following a coordinated hot pursuit, security checkpoints across the state were alerted, putting pressure on the kidnappers. This led them to abandon the priest at Ihiala before escaping into a nearby bush.
The Joint Security Team recovered the abandoned Lexus SUV and secured the area in Ihiala. Meanwhile, efforts are ongoing to track down the fleeing suspects and recover Father Echezona’s stolen Toyota Highlander.
“The situation is under control, and further updates will be provided as the investigation progresses,” SP Ikenga assured.
