Senior Nigerian Evangelical Leader Abducted As Church Attacks Raise Alarm

by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Chief International Correspondent

ABUJA (Worthy News) – A senior leader of one of Nigeria’s largest evangelical denominations has been abducted in Nigeria’s central Plateau State while concern remains about several Christian worshipers kidnapped elsewhere in the turbulent African nation, Christian sources said Tuesday.

Reverend Sunday Agang of the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), chairman of the Board of Trustees, was taken Sunday from his residence in Farin Gida, Jos, by unknown gunmen, said sources familiar with the case. It was not immediately clear whether they had demanded a ransom.

Separately, authorities and Christian sources said an attack on an ECWA church occurred in Kwara State, where suspected bandits stormed a Sunday service in Omugo community, Ifelodun Local Government Area.

In published remarks, authorities said “suspected bandits” — a term often used for heavily armed criminal gangs, some with Islamist links — “invaded the church premises” in the rural village of Omugo, Ifelodun Local Government Area.

At least eight worshippers were reportedly abducted in the raid.

SEPARATE CHURCH ATTACK

Three of the abducted victims reportedly escaped, while five others remain in captivity, sources familiar with the case said.

A 90-year-old woman was beaten and left injured during the attack, witnesses said.

Family members identified two of the kidnapped victims as Bukola Sunday and Joshua Akanbi Adeyemi, saying they have received no contact from the abductors.

“We are calling on the government to please come to our side and rescue the abducted family members,” a relative, Foluke Janet, told local media, adding that the family could not afford any ransom if demanded.

A local pastor, Abraham Bukola Oladele, who also serves as a district chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), an umbrella body representing millions of Christians across denominations in Nigeria, said the attack unfolded during Sunday school.

WORSHIPPERS FLEEING GUNFIRE

“People ran into the bush when gunmen approached and shots were fired,” he said, adding that security forces later responded.

Residents say the community has faced repeated attacks, with reports suggesting this was at least the third such raid in recent months.

The incidents highlight growing insecurity in parts of Nigeria, where armed groups — often described as bandits or militants — have increasingly targeted rural communities, including churches.

In Plateau State and elsewhere in central Nigeria, violence has also been linked to clashes involving armed herders, criminal gangs, and, at times, Islamist militants, although motives are often disputed.

Nigeria ranks 7th on the 2026 World Watch List of countries where Christians face persecution, yet remains the deadliest country, accounting for 3,490 of the 4,849 believers killed worldwide for their faith, according to advocacy group Open Doors, which compiles the annual report.

RISING INSECURITY CONCERNS

Worthy News has previously reported on repeated abductions of clergy and worshippers in Nigeria, with churches frequently targeted during services or in rural areas where security presence is limited.

Local leaders have urged authorities to deploy more security forces and protect vulnerable communities, warning that residents lack the means to defend themselves against heavily armed attackers.

Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation with more than 220 million people, is roughly evenly split between Muslims and Christians, with an estimated 100 million Christians living mainly in the south and central regions of the country.

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