Eyewitnesses have given a chilling account of how Rev. Fr. Matthew Eya, the parish priest of St. Charles Catholic Church, Eha-Ndiagu, was gruesomely murdered on Friday evening by a group of gunmen in Eha-Ndiagu community, Eha-Alumonah, Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State.
According to those who witnessed the attack but pleaded to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal, the priest was driving along the Ehandiagu Road at about 7 p.m. when the killers opened fire on his vehicle from multiple directions.
“They started shooting sporadically as they approached,” one eyewitness narrated. “Bullets shattered the front windscreen and tore through the tyres, forcing the vehicle to a stop. A group of gunmen quickly surrounded the car, and one of them, who was on a motorbike, moved closer and fired a shot through the roof directly at his head while he was still behind the wheel. It was a deliberate execution.”
The horrifying attack occurred near the site of the ongoing Type C hospital project. While some reports suggest there may have been other occupants of the vehicle who were abducted, this has not been officially confirmed.
Fr. Eya, a native of Ugbaike in Enugu Ezike, Igbo-Eze North Local Government Area of Enugu State, was reportedly returning from Enugu at the time of the ambush.
Confirming the tragic development, the Chancellor of the Catholic Diocese of Nsukka, Fr. Cajetan Iyidobi, described the killing as a devastating loss to the church and the community. “Shocked to the marrow, it is with crushing pain and sorrow, yet a total submission to the will of the Almighty God and a firm hope in the resurrection of the dead, that I inform you of the tragic death of yet another brother of ours, Rev. Fr. Matthew Eya,” his statement read. “He was shot dead yesterday, 19 September 2025, along Eha-Alumona – Eha-Ndiagu road. May his soul rest in peace. Amen.”
As of the time of filing this report, the Enugu State Police Command has yet to release an official statement on the killing or provide updates on possible arrests, while the community remains in shock and mourning over the priest’s cold-blooded assassination.
