Gunmen have reportedly killed Rev. Fr. Mathew Eya, parish priest of St. Charles Catholic Church, in Eha-Ndiagu community, Eha-Alumonah, Nsukka LGA of Enugu State.

The cleric was attacked on Friday evening while returning from Enugu. Witnesses said the assailants, riding on a motorcycle, intercepted his vehicle near a Type C hospital project site. They allegedly shot at the tyres to immobilise the car before firing multiple shots at him at close range.

Although some accounts suggest the attack may have been linked to kidnapping, sources insist it appeared to be a targeted assassination, as no abduction occurred and the priest was travelling alone.

Fr. Eya, a native of Ugbaike in Enugu Ezike, hailed from Igbo-Eze North LGA.

As of the time of filing this report, neither the police nor the Catholic Diocese of Nsukka had issued an official statement.