Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State has revealed that those carrying out attacks such as the one on St Francis Xavier Catholic Church in the state are foreigners from northern parts of Africa.
The Governor revealed this on Sunday following a bloody attack on the church in Owo, Ondo State. The attack which has been met with several condemnations saw the death of more than 25 innocent worshippers with many more injured.
While describing the attack as vile and satanic, Akeredolu promised that the perpetraors would be arrested soon.
The Governor, who has departed Abuja for the state, urged residents to keep calm and not take the laws into their hands.
He said: “What happened here is too tragic. It is the most tragic event. What is happening in America is a child’s play to what has happened here.
“To say the least, it is condemnable. I’m grieved. Let me let you know that we have a duty to protect you.
“Security services also lost about two men. The attack was sudden. How they carried out the attack and entered the church cannot be explained.
“Let us not retaliate because we will apprehend them. Don’t take laws into your hands. I want to express my condolences to the families of the victims.
“Security agencies in the state must take all steps necessary because this must not repeat itself.
“On our own part, we must be vigilant. We take responsibility for what has happened.
“Most of those that are carrying out these attacks are foreigners from Mali who were trained in Libya,” he said.
Meanwhile, an eyewitness has narrated what transpired in the church during the attack. Speaking to BBC Yoruba, Abayomi, who witnessed the crime said suspected terrorists attacked the church when the service was about to end.
The cleric said they locked themselves for 20 minutes during the attack.
“We were about to round off service. I had even asked people to start leaving, that was how we started hearing gunshots from different angles,” he said.
“We hid inside the church but some people had left when the attack happened.
“We locked ourselves in the church for 20 minutes. When we heard that they had left, we opened the church and rushed victims to the hospital,” he narrated.
