Area Boys loot church offerings, stab pastor

Area Boys loot church offerings, stab pastor
From JUDEX OKORO, Calabar
Wednesday, February 10, 2010


Photo: Sun Publishing
More Stories on This Section
Miscreants, popularly known as Area Boys, penultimate weekend invaded one of the up-coming pentecostal churches, Christ Fountain Fellowship Church (CFFC), Calabar, Cross River State, and looted offerings and other valuables.
The church, located along New Airport Road, was carrying out one of its weekly crusades between 6:00pm and 12 mid-night when the hoodlums struck.

Daily Sun gathered that the area boys, who were said to be roaming the streets, had positioned some of their informants inside the church to feed them with information. Shortly after the collection of offerings and tithes the hoodlums quickly dashed into the church and headed straight for the offering box and emptied it.
The hoodlums further demanded that every member should surrender their valuables including wallets, handbags and wrist watches as they were busy shouting “the blood of Jesus.”

The Pastor, Etubom David Etim, claimed to have been pushed by the Holy Spirit, confronted the hoodlums headlong, expecting his followers to join him in chasing the strange “visitors” away. But he was taken aback as none of his members could summon up courage to push back the area boys.

However, in the process of confronting them, the pastor was repeatedly stabbed.
Eyewitness account had it that Pastor Etim was so bruised all over his body that he became unconscious and had to be rushed to a nearby clinic for medical attention. While some members fled for their dear lives, a few stood by their pastor.

Efforts by the sympathizers to over-run the area boys proved unsuccessful as they escaped with their loots.
One of the prayer warriors, Mrs. Koko Offiong, said “ these boys have been monitoring the church for quite some days. Sometimes they would pretend to come for worship, thereby using the opportunity to carry out surveillance on the place.”

Embittered Offiong stated that “it is very unfortunate that the criminals would choose a place of worship to rob. They would definitely receive their reward in due course.” He prayed God to save the church from further embarrassment while wishing the pastor quick recovery.
Reacting angrily to the incident, the wife of the Pastor, Mrs. Adiaha Etim, said, “the boys will come to a disgraceful end. If they had carried the money alone without assaulting my husband, I wouldn’t have bothered my head. But for daring a man of God at this auspicious time without caring a hoot is like daring God Almighty and they would face the wrath of the Lord accordingly.”