Kidnapped Nigerian Archbishop freed

Nigeria’s second-highest ranking Anglican clergy, kidnapped more than a week ago, has been released over the weekend.

Archbishop Kattey is the head of the Anglican Church in the predominantly Christian Niger Delta.

He and his wife Beatrice were seized close to their home on 6 September, but his wife was released soon after during a police chase.

It’s not clear how Archbishop Kattey’s freedom was secured. According to Nigerian news reports, police aren’t sure whether a ransom was paid or not. But the BBC is reporting the police have confirmed no ransom was paid. They’re also reporting police have issued a statement saying: “His captors dropped him when the police were about to close in on them.”

He’s been reported as being in a “stable condition”.

Kattey is the dean of archbishops of the Anglican communion in Nigeria, ranking him second to the primate of the Anglican Church in the country.