Abuja Stampede: Police Arrest Catholic Priest, Abuja Church Officials Over Fatal Stampede

The Parish Priest and officials of the Holy Trinity Catholic Church Abuja, Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have been arrested by the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command over their roles in a fatal stampede while distributing food palliatives within the church premises.

OPEN TELEVISION NAIJA (OTN) News gathered that the Catholic Archbishop of Abuja Diocese, Ignatius Kaigama, has confirmed the arrests during his Christmas message titled “Christmas: A Season of Hope and Renewal’, held in Abuja.

The Catholic Archbishop, in a Christmas message titled “Christmas: A Season of Hope and Renewal’, however, condemned the arrest of the church officials, stating that it is counterproductive and a demonstration of lack of empathy.

OTN reports that the cleric, who objects to the philosophy of such arrests, wondering what purpose they were meant to serve.

He further stressed that to say the least, the idea of arresting the church officials was unfriendly, and a misplaced zeal, urging authorities to assist the church and organisers in recovering from the traumatic occurrence instead of threatening prosecution.

The Public Relations Officer of the Police Command, Josephine Adeh, who equally confirmed the arrests, cited negligence by the organisers, pointing out that it was wrong for the church authorities to have organized an event of that magnitude without notifying the police.