Okonkwo, a priest of the Catholic Diocese of Nnewi, was shot dead on Thursday by the gunmen along Onitsha-Owerri Expressway.
This was disclosed in a letter dated December 27, 2024, by the Diocesan Secretariat in Nnewi and signed by the Chancellor, Nnewi Diocese, Rev. Fr. Raphael Ezeogu.
He said Okonkwo was born on August 11, 1984 and ordained a Catholic priest on July 11, 2015.
The diocesan chancellor also solicited prayers and Holy Masses for his eternal joy from the Catholic faithful.
Where sorrow increases, divine consolation increases all the more. The Catholic Diocese of Nnewi announces, with sorrow but with stronger faith, that our dear Rev. Fr. Tobias Chukwujekwu Okonkwo died yesterday, 26th December 2024,” the letter read.
“He was shot dead by unidentified assailants at Ihiala, along the Onitsha-Owerri Expressway around 7 pm and 8 pm.
“Till yesterday, Fr. Tobias, a pharmacist and native of Ekwulumili in Nnewi South Local Government Area, was manager of the respective Schools of Nursing, Midwifery, and Medical Laboratory at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital Ihiala.
“We solicit your prayers and Holy Masses for his eternal joy. May Fr. Tobias rejoice in Paradise forever, Amen. May God console the bereaved. Funeral arrangements will be communicated in due course.”
The police authorities are yet to respond to the incident.
This is not the first time a cleric has been targeted by gunmen recently.
About three weeks ago, a retired Archbishop of the Niger Province and Bishop of Nnewi, Most Rev. Prof. Godwin Okpala, was reported to have disappeared alongside his driver.
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