![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")
Policemen in Anambra State have arrested a middle-aged pastor, popularly called Bro. Solomon, for allegedly defiling a seven-year-old girl in Nodu village, Okpuno, Awka South Local Government Area of the state.
Bro. Solomon was said to be in charge of a prayer ministry where hundreds of worshipers, mostly women, gather to seek solutions to their spiritual, marital and other problems.
It was gathered that the victim was a daughter to one of the members of the ministry, brought by her mother to the church for prayers before she was sexually abused by the suspect.
Confirming the incident yesterday, the Commissioner of Police, Garba Umar, said the victim had been taken to the hospital for proper medical attention, while investigation is ongoing.
Umar said: “A little girl who was taken to a pastor for spiritual healing was molested by the same pastor. The man had already been arrested. Anybody who engages in such dastardly act must be dealt with according to the law. We will carry out full investigation into the matter to ensure justice is done.”
The police boss, however, cautioned parents and guardians to be careful of where they take their wards to in search of spiritual solution, warning that some people are wolves in sheep’s clothing, deceiving their members.
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He said the suspect was arrested following the alarm raised by residents of the area who became suspicious of his sexual harassments with church members.
Some members of the church and residents in separate interviews told The Guardian that the pastor’s activities became suspicious as a result of several allegations making the rounds against the ‘man of God’. They called on government to investigate the proliferation of prayer ministries across the state in order to put a stop to such incidences
One of the residents, who simply identified himself as Edward, said he was shocked at the arrest of the suspect by the police who took him to his prayer house where all kinds of charms and fetish objects were discovered.
“This man is not a pastor at all. Native doctor is far better than him. See the kind of things discovered in a prayer house,” he said.
Chiamanam Johnson, who claimed to have been an old member of the ministry, expressed disappointment at the event, saying it has exposed the man’s behind the scenes activities. He described the incident as sacrilegious.
Another member of the church, who spoke on grounds of anonymity, said she was attracted to the ministry by the preaching and outstanding miracles being performed by the suspect. “I started attending the ministry because of the miracles and preaching of the pastor. I only come here on Fridays because I still attend my church on Sundays.”
Meanwhile, the police command in Plateau State has arrested three men for allegedly raping a 14-year-old girl. Presenting the suspects to newsmen in Jos, the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Undie Adie, said the incident took place on January 23 and the case was reported to the Angwan Rogo Division by mother of the victim on January 26. He said the suspects conspired with one, Yahaya, and dragged the girl into his room.
