![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")
Nigerian model Favour Rufus was diagnosed with glaucoma at the age of seven but she still had a clear vision of becoming a beauty queen.
Favour recently competed against 18 other models for the crown in Miss Port Harcourt City, the biggest state beauty pageant in Nigeria.
She finished second and, in a subsequent beauty contest, was crowned Miss Port Harcourt City Humanity 2022.
“A lot of people discouraged me from contesting. Most were not even family members,” Favour told the BBC.
She says it was one of her teachers who first noticed that she had eye problems after her performance in school dropped.
A visit to the eye clinic confirmed her worst fears.
“The doctor at the clinic told me it was too late. I had lost my left eye.”
She was told her right eye was still fine, but would need regular use of eyedrops.
Favour said her right eye is extremely blurry at the moment, and she depends only on the mobility training she got from rehabilitation.
Despite the odds, she is determined to pursue her career as a beauty queen.
