![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-300x200.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria on Thursday denied that government proposals to share out land to end a wave of violence over grazing rights amounted to “colonization” of fertile areas by his own ethnic group.
Clashes between semi-nomadic herders, mostly of the Fulani ethnic group, and settled farmers in central states have killed around 100 people in recent weeks.
Buhari’s critics accuse him of favouring the herders because he is Fulani.
Thousands of herders have moved southwards in the last few years to flee spreading desertification in the north, putting pressure on dwindling fertile land.
A government proposal to provide them with grazing areas has been called a plan to create “cattle colonies” in Nigeria’s press. Opponents say it could disrupt the country’s delicate balance among around 250 ethnic groups roughly evenly split between Muslims and Christians.
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Buhari, in a meeting with Catholic bishops explained that, “the policy proposed by federal government in response to the frequent clashes between herdsmen and farmers in the country is not meant to colonize any part of the country”, his spokesman said.
The president, who is a Muslim, told them “the intention of government is to create grazing locations for cattle rearers, which has now been misconstrued as another form of colonization”.
The central states – where religious and cultural differences frequently ignite conflict – have been at the epicentre of clashes for decades. Rapid population growth has added to the pressure.
But the deaths of at least 83 people in such conflicts in the first week of the year has made the violence politically explosive.
Lawmakers began a two-day meeting, described as a “security summit”, on Thursday in the capital Abuja to discuss the unrest.
“The sharp increase in murderous violence … has jolted us out of any last vestiges of complacency or denial,” Bukola Saraki, the Senate president, tweeted after the talks.
Buhari, elected in 2015 after vowing to improve security, has not stated whether he will seek a second term in elections next year.
Nigeria’s army said on Wednesday it would deploy troops to the states worst hit by the unrest from Feb. 15 to Mar. 31.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
