THE Christ Apostolic Church (CAC) Oke-Isegun in Eruku, Ekiti Local Council of Kwara State, which was attacked last Tuesday by bandits, who killed three, kidnapped 38 and wounded several, yesterday held its first service since the deadly assault.

The Sunday church service was held amid a heavy security presence in and around the premises.

Journalists observed heavy deployment of security operatives across Eruku, including soldiers, Special Tactical Squad from Force Headquarters, SWAT, Anti-Kidnapping Unit of the Kwara Police Command, and local vigilantes.
The deployment was said to have been the directive of President Bola Tinubu, who mandated joint operations to track the attackers and rescue the victims.

Meanwhile, the service, conducted inside the tainted auditorium where the attack occurred last Tuesday, was dominated by prayers for the release of the kidnapped worshippers and repose of the deceased.

It was during the service that the church secretary, Michael Agbabiaka, hinted that the abductors had reduced the ransom from N100 million per head to N20 million.
He also used the occasion to confirm that 38 persons were abducted, contrary to earlier figures of 60 circulating on social media.

According to him, the church initially compiled 35 names, but later, during a verification exercise, identified three additional non-members who were also kidnapped during the siege.

“Rumours that over 60 people were abducted are not true,” he told Sobi FM, adding: “We have 38 people still in the bush. Three people died, and one is in the hospital receiving treatment. I have their names and phone numbers. We don’t want misinformation.”