A main suspect in the kidnapping and killing of Rev. Fr. Sylvester Okechukwu has confessed to planning the abduction, citing financial difficulties as his motivation.
The suspect, whose name has been withheld, is currently in custody at the Headquarters of Operation Safe Haven (OPSH) in Jos, Plateau State, where he is assisting security operatives with investigations.
According to Daily Trust, the suspect admitted that he orchestrated the kidnapping because he needed N200,000 to resolve a personal issue.
He revealed that he enlisted the help of other criminals from different locations to carry out the abduction, which took place at the priest’s residence in Tachira, Kaura Local Government Area of Kaduna State, on the night of March 4.
The priest, who served in the Catholic Diocese of Kafanchan, was taken by the kidnappers but was later found dead the following day, March 5.
While the suspect admitted to masterminding the abduction, he denied instructing his accomplices to kill the priest. He claimed that after facilitating the initial capture, he left the scene, leaving the victim in the custody of his associates.
His words: “Fr Okechukwu is living in our house at Tachira and I masterminded his kidnap because I needed N200,000 to solve a personal problem. I invited some guys (colleagues) from other places to assist me to accomplish the mission but I didn’t ask them to kill him. I don’t know why they (allegedly) killed him; I was not with them because I later left them with the priest.”
