Key Points

• Bandits stormed an ECWA church in Omugo, Kwara State during Sunday service and abducted at least eight worshippers, including the pastor’s wife.
• Survivors say attackers beat elderly congregants, seized belongings, and fired gunshots as the congregation fled through multiple exits.
• The Kwara State Government claims security forces rescued three victims; community members say the attackers released them voluntarily.

Armed bandits stormed an Evangelical Church of West Africa in Omugo, Ifelodun Local Government Area of Kwara State, on Sunday morning, abducting at least eight worshippers including the pastor’s wife and sending the rural community into widespread fear and displacement.

The attackers, wearing green masks and blue attire, emerged from a nearby bush shortly after 9 a.m. and descended on the congregation mid-service.

Church member Afariogun Sunday Stephen said he spotted the men approaching and immediately raised the alarm.

“I started shouting ‘bandits, run!’ immediately I saw them. That gave many people the chance to escape,” Stephen said.

He said gunmen fired shots to prevent worshippers from fleeing, but many escaped through the church’s multiple exits. Attackers then seized those who could not run, particularly the elderly.

Eleven people were initially abducted. One infant was later abandoned and two managed to escape, leaving eight still in captivity as of Monday.

Those identified among the remaining captives include the pastor’s wife, Chief David Omopariola, Chief Joseph Ibitoye Afariogun and Mr. Joshua Ajeyemi.

Elderly survivors describe violence inside the church

Alice Afariogun, 80, was among those unable to flee. Attackers dragged her across the church floor and struck her arm with a gun butt, causing her to bleed.

“When I saw my husband being taken away, I shouted and begged them to release him, but they refused. Instead, they kept beating me,” she said.

The attackers eventually abandoned her, apparently concluding she was of little use to them. Dried bloodstains were still visible on the church floor when a journalist visited Monday.

Omolola Daramola said she received a distress call confirming that both her parents had been kidnapped. “They have taken my dad and mummy away! Somebody please come to my rescue,” she said.

Residents flee as government and community dispute rescue account

By Monday, Omugo had taken on a desolate appearance. Residents loaded household belongings into vehicles and departed in search of safety, while security operatives remained absent from within the community, with only a few stationed at checkpoints along the road leading into the settlement.

The Kwara State Government said coordinated security forces rescued three abducted victims and helped repel the attackers.

A community member, speaking on condition of anonymity, disputed the account, saying the attackers released the three on their own terms, abandoning those they considered of no value.

The Olomugo of Omugo, Oba David Adeboye Odeyemi, called for urgent government intervention and noted that local vigilantes lacked adequate weapons to confront the bandits. He confirmed that the pastor’s wife and members of his extended family remain in captivity.

Residents say their central concern goes beyond the return of the abducted. They want assurance that they can live and worship without the looming threat of another attack.