Kidnappers kill young Nigerian seminarian

(OSV News) -- A young seminarian has become the latest victim of killings in Nigeria, the West African country where attack and kidnapping of Catholic clergy is on the rise.

In the first three months of 2025, Nigeria has had three times more kidnappings of clergy and religious than in the same period of 2024, said the pontifical charity Aid to the Church in Need, or ACN.

Andrew Peter, the 21-year-old seminarian, was kidnapped alongside Father Philip Ekweli, a priest from the Diocese of Auchi in southern Nigeria on March 3. Father Ekweli was released on March 13, the diocese said, but the abductors killed the seminarian.

The gunmen had snatched the two from the priest's rectory of St. Peter Catholic Church in Iviukhua-Agenebode in Edo state, as they attacked the rectory and the church. They had destroyed doors and windows to gain entry and later led the seminarian and the priest into the forest.

"The Diocese expresses sincere condolences to the family members of Andrew Peter, praying to God to grant them consolation and strength in this difficult time. May his soul rest in peace," the spokesman of the Diocese of Auchi said in a statement on behalf of Bishop Gabriel Ghiakhomo Dunia.

The bishop said the people felt helpless and abandoned and that their life has been "hell" as the worsening security situation made Edo state a haven of kidnappers. He called on the government to step up security to protect lives and property.

"Life has been hell for our people in recent times. People are not safe on the roads, in their farms and even in their homes," he said in a statement released by spokesman Father Peter Egielewa.

In the last two months, priest kidnappings have surged in Nigeria.

According to ACN, factors include expectation of ransom by gangs, religious and ethics conflicts involving extremist groups -- such as Boko Haram, the Islamic State group in West African Province and Muslim Fulani herders -- are fueling the priests' kidnappings.

According to statistics compiled by the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, 145 priests and seminarians have been kidnapped in the country over the past 10 years, with 11 killed. These numbers were published after Father Ekweli was kidnapped, but before his release, and also before the murders of Father Sylvester Okechukwu and seminarian Andrew Peter.

Father Okechukwu, a priest of the Diocese of Kafanchan, was kidnapped on the morning of March 4 and found dead the following day, on Ash Wednesday. He was the seventh priest to be kidnapped in Nigeria since January.