Catholic Church Altar Server arrested for kidnapping priests in Adamawa

A 34-year-old altar server, Taledo Damiel, has been arrested by the Nigerian police for allegedly masterminding the kidnapping of two Catholic priests, Rev. Fathers Matthew David Dusami and Abraham Samman, in Adamawa State.

The priests were abducted two weeks ago at a convent in Gwaida Mallam, Numan Local Government Area.

According to a statement by the Adamawa State Police Command, Damiel was arrested on Saturday night in connection with the kidnapping.

The police spokesperson, SP Suleiman Nguroje, confirmed that Damiel had been taken into custody and that the rescued priests had been reunited with their Catholic family.

Nguroje stated, “In a bid to ensure protection of lives and property, a safe and secured environment in the state, the command carried out a coordinated rescue operation at a criminal hideout in Gwaida Mallam village, connecting parts of Numan and Demsa LGAs.”

The police had initially tracked Damiel to a location where he was supposed to collect a ₦10 million ransom.

However, he abandoned the ransom and fled the scene, leaving behind critical evidence, including a motorcycle.

The police later tracked him to his inherited apartment, where the abducted priests were found and rescued.

A locally fabricated assault rifle was also recovered at the crime scene.

Nguroje added, “These rescue operations commenced from February 21, 2025, in various criminal hideouts within the state and it yielded positive results as one Tahamado Jonathan Demian, 34 years old, a member of the same church with the victims, was arrested for kidnapping of his two Reverend fathers (Abraham Samman and Matthew David Dusami) of Catholic Dioceses of Yola and Jalingo respectively.”

The Adamawa State Police Commissioner, Dankombo Morris, has reiterated the command’s commitment to ridding the state of violent crimes.

“The command is committed to ridding the state of violent crimes,” Morris emphasized.

The police are continuing their investigation into the kidnapping and will provide updates as more information becomes available.

Also in Adamawa, a dramatic confrontation unfolded in Yola, Adamawa State, on Saturday when a six-member gang, known as Shila Boys, clashed with police operatives.

The gang had been robbing people in the area, prompting a distress call to the Adamawa State Police Command.

According to the command’s statement, “The Command received a distress call from a concerned citizen reporting that about six armed Shila Boys were attacking and robbing innocent citizens of their mobile phones and other valuables around Jimeta Bypass, near Yan Rake Market, Yola North LGA.”

The police swiftly responded to the call, deploying the Anti-Shila Squad to the scene.

Upon arrival, the police were met with resistance from the gang, who hurled stones and damaged a police patrol vehicle’s windscreen.

During the ensuing confrontation, one of the suspects was killed, while the others managed to escape.

The police recovered a cutlass, a pair of scissors, and a large quantity of illicit drugs from the scene.

As stated by the command’s Public Relations Officer, Suleiman Nguroje, “On sighting our men, the hoodlums, in a bid to resist arrest, launched an attack, hurling stones at the police and damaging the windscreen of a police patrol vehicle.”

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