BY: News Peddlers
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Over the killing of a Catholic priest, Isaac Achi, enraged youths set fire to the divisional police headquarters in Kafin-Koro, Paikoro local government area, Niger State.
According to the DAILY NIGERIAN, the deceased, who was the priest of St. Peters and Paul Catholic Church, was burned until his death, in the early hours of Sunday morning by suspected bandits.
Wasiu Abiodun, the state police public relations officer, confirmed the incident, saying the youths stormed the station around 9 a.m. on Tuesday.
According to a statement sent to DAILY NIGERIAN, "On 17/01/2023 at around 09:00am, some angry youths of Kafin-Koro district, Paikoro Local Government Area mobilised and protested in Kafin-Koro town over the killing of the parish priest, Rev. Fr. Isaac," Mr Abiodun said.
"During the protest, the rampaging youths attacked and set Kaffin-Koro Divisional Headquarters ablaze".
He stated that the value of the damaged and burned items has yet to be determined.
He did, however, stating that reinforcement teams led by the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Operations, arrived the scene and that normalcy was restored.
According to a Kafin-Koro resident who spoke to our correspondent on the condition of anonymity, church members had gathered to hold a procession in honour of the late priest when the police team arrived with the intention of providing security cover.
However, church members reportedly told police officers that they did not need their presence because they were unable to rescue the priest after he made a distress call before being killed by the assailants.
According to reports, the disagreement resulted in a brawl between church members and police.
"Church members came out as early as 8 a.m. to hold a procession in honour of the late priest. Before they began, the police arrived and announced that they would be providing security for the procession.
"However, the people resisted. They claimed that the pastor called them as he was dying, but they did not respond until he was killed. As a result, their presence is unnecessary.
"A fracas ensued, and the police began to fire shots, resulting in the death of one person," the source said.
According to the source, the street of Kafin Koro has been deserted due to police arrests, and over ten youths have been arrested.