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He was said to
have been kidnapped on December 27, alongside his driver, at a location not far from his residence in Owerri, the Imo capital.
Days after he was kidnapped, there were reports that he had been killed.
However, Nnaemeka Njezi, the diocesan assistant secretary, in a statement,
had denied the claim, and asked for prayers to ensure the safe return of the cleric.
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“His Grace, Most Rev Anthony J.V. Obinna, Archbishop of Owerri, hereby requests all Christ’s faithful and people of goodwill at large to disregard the purported news feed on the killing of the Auxiliary Bishop of Owerri Archdiocese, Most Rev. Moses Chikwe,” Njezi had said.
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Nnaemeka Njezi, the diocesean assistant secretary, said in a statement seen by TheCable that the report of the bishop’s death is unconfirmed and misleading.
TheCable had reported how Chikwe was kidnapped on Sunday in Owerri, the state capital.
His abductors had attacked him and his driver at a location close to his residence.
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But on Tuesday night, unconfirmed reports emerged online saying the bishop has been killed by his abductors.
Njezi denied the rumour hours after and asked Nigerians to continue to pray for the release of the bishop and his driver.
His statement read: “His Grace, Most Rev Anthony J. V. Obinna, Archbishop of Owerri, hereby requests all Christ’s faithful and people of goodwill at large to disregard the purported news feed on the killing of the Auxiliary Bishop of Owerri Archdiocese, Most Rev. Moses Chikwe.
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The Archbishop of Owerri Catholic, A. Obinna, has described as false the news making the rounds that the auxiliary bishop of the archdiocese, Moses Chikwe, who was kidnapped on Sunday in Owerri, the Imo state capital, had been killed by his abductors.
There were reports on Tuesday evening that the corpse of the prelate was allegedly found somewhere at the Ngor Okpala Local Government Area of the state, causing panic in the state.
But the archbishop of the archdiocese in a statement swiftly issued by Rev. Fr. Nnaemeka Njezi, who is the assistant secretary of the Catholic Archdiocese of Owerri, stated that there was no truth in the death rumour.
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