Church Officials Arrested Over Kidnap of Two Catholic Priests in Plateau

Security agencies have arrested four suspects accused of masterminding the abduction of two Catholic priests from St Vincent De Paul Parish in Pankshin, Plateau State, uncovering what authorities described as an insider job.

Investigators identified the gang leader as the parish’s financial secretary, who allegedly coordinated the abduction and issued a ₦25m ransom demand.

All four suspects are local Christians, contradicting initial speculation that armed pastoralists were responsible.

The priests were taken last week, prompting a security sweep across Pankshin and neighbouring communities.

The case adds to ongoing insecurity in Plateau, where rural communities have faced years of kidnappings, night-time raids and armed attacks.

The state, situated in Nigeria’s conflict-prone Middle Belt, has recorded repeated clashes involving farming communities and armed pastoralist groups over land use, grazing routes and communal rivalry.

Christian groups in Plateau and parts of Kaduna have long alleged that armed militias have targeted Christian-majority villages in a pattern they describe as deliberate attacks, citing incidents involving assaults on churches and remote settlements.

Human rights organisations have documented several such attacks, while also noting that motives often differ and are not always religious.

Security agencies have continued to warn against hasty attribution of blame, stressing that criminal gangs, communal actors and opportunistic kidnappers all operate within the region.

Officials said the arrested suspects are in custody and undergoing further interrogation, adding that the development underscores the need for communities to allow investigations to determine responsibility for each security incident.

Authorities are also probing whether the group belongs to a wider kidnap network active in Plateau and neighbouring states.