![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")
The Rivers State House of Assembly has suspended the impeachment proceedings against Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his deputy, Ngozi Odu, following the intervention of President Bola Tinubu.
The decision to stop the process was taken on Thursday during plenary at the Assembly’s resumed sitting in Port Harcourt, the state capital.
Chronicle NG reported that at its first sitting in 2026, the House commenced impeachment proceedings against Fubara and his deputy over alleged gross misconduct.
During the plenary presided over by the Speaker, the Majority Leader, Major Jack, read a notice detailing the allegations of gross misconduct against Fubara.
The allegations against the governor and his deputy listed by the House include the demolition of the Assembly complex, extra-budgetary spending, withholding of funds meant for the Assembly Service Commission, alleged refusal to comply with a Supreme Court ruling on the financial autonomy of the legislature, and other acts deemed to constitute gross misconduct.
The Assembly stated that the notices of allegations were brought pursuant to Section 188 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) against the governor and his deputy.
In a letter dated Friday, January 16, 2026, the House requested the state Chief Judge, Justice Simeon Amadi, to set up a seven-man panel to investigate the allegations against Fubara and Odu.
Justice Amadi, however, denied the request, claiming that he was prohibited from acting further on the matter by an existing High Court order.
In separate lawsuits contesting the impeachment process, Fubara and Odu obtained injunctions from a High Court in Port Harcourt that prevented the Chief Judge from acting on the Assembly’s request or forming the probe panel.
The Chief Judge also mentioned in his reply to the Assembly that the Speaker and the Rivers State House of Assembly had appealed the High Court’s restraining order.
Days after Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike accused the governor of breaking a peace deal mediated by President Bola Tinubu in 2025, the impeachment process was started.
Chronicle NG reports that Tinubu met with Fubara and Wike on Sunday, February 8, at the President’s official residence in Aso Rock, Abuja.
Following what he called the president’s “decisive intervention,” Wike confirmed the meeting and expressed great optimism that the state’s ongoing political crisis is almost resolved.
![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")
