The incident occurred in the early hours of Saturday along Adim in Ebom. The pastor, according to DAILY POST’s findings, was being conveyed in a motorcycle to Assigha in Yakurr local government area of Cross River through Adim when the incident occurred.
It was gathered that the pastor was from Yakurr while the cyclist was from Ebom, one of the war-torn communities that had issues with Usumutong, Ediba and Affafayin, all in Abi local government area.
Speaking with our correspondent on phone, the village head of Ediba in Abi local government area of Cross River State, Uvara Imong Anani, said, “I am aware of the renewed communal clash and the killing of a pastor and his boy.
“The incident occurred in early hours of Saturday along Adim road. It is the people of Usumutong that killed the victims,” he alleged, explaining that “because of this trouble, the Ebom people pass through Adim to Ebom and that is where Usumutong people went and ambushed and killed the duo and had their heads cut off”.
He said the pastor was from Assigha in Yakurr local government area while the cyclist was from Ebom in Abi local government area of Cross River. He further stated that the people of Assigha came on Saturday and collected the headless body of their sons to their place for burial.
According to him, the pastor was living in Ebom and had his church there, “He was going to his village when the incident occurred. His people came on Saturday and collected his headless body for burial.”
The Village Head of Ebom, Chief Henry Bassey, said “The people of Usumutong ambushed the victims and killed them at the road leading to Adim. The pastor was going to his village with the cyclist conveying him. We have reported the incident to the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in Ugep and he asked us to bring the corpses and we did that”.
Also speaking with DAILY POST, the Village Head of Usumutong, who is the Paramount Ruler of Abi local government area, His Royal Majesty (HRM) Ovaı Solomon Osım Edward denied the allegation that his people killed the pastor and his friend.
“How can we kill them? we are in our community, how can we go into Ebom community and start killing people? Our community was attacked and several houses burnt. They are liars, we have not entered their community. Come to Usumutong and see what they did to us, the destruction of our property and the number of people killed.”
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Ms Irene Ugbo, confirmed the killing of the duo, saying, “the police have deployed team of mobile police men there’
“They had been there since the first renewed clash erupted, now the area is calm, we are investigating the death of the pastor and his friend with a view to arresting those who killed them (Pastor and his friend). Several meetings have been held and another one will hold today.”
Also speaking, the Chairman of Promotion of Peace and Conflict Settlement, an NGO, Mr Wisdom Usani said the pastor was being conveyed by the cyclist and on the road leading to Adim from Ebom when they were shot, killed and their head beheaded.
He said, “Let government support us with a view to ensuring lasting peace because the continuous bloodshed if allowed to continue, one day, it would become something that nobody would be able to control.”
