![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")
Gbenga Ogunfadeke, 45, was detained after it was claimed that he had chained his two children and kept them in solitary confinement until they died.
The suspect was reportedly apprehended on Tuesday by members of the State Security Network, also known as the Amotekun Corps, in Ibiade, Ogun Waterside Local Government Area of Ogun State.
In a statement published Wednesday in Abeokuta, the state capital, the corps’ State Commander, David Akinremi, confirmed the suspect’s detention.
The suspect, a father of three, claimed that his kids had stolen something.
He is said to have kept the kids chained and sequestered for more than three months without providing them with food or water.
The situation reportedly led to the death of two of the children.
It was further gathered that the suspect had been maltreating the children aged 16, 17, and 18 since he took custody of them following his crashed marriage with their mother, Busola Otusegun.
Akinremi said the suspect was arrested following a complaint by his ex-wife.
He said, “One of the three children came across his aunt in Ibiade where he currently lives with his father (suspect), and narrated their experience with their father which led to the death of his two elder siblings – Yusuf Ogunfadeke (18) and Dasola Ogunfadeke (17) between April and June 2022 in Ijebu-Ode where they were all living with the suspect until he relocated back to Ibiade.
“According to him (the child), their father chained and locked them in solitary confinement without food and water for over three months which led to the death of the two siblings but he miraculously survived the ordeal.”
The Amotekun commandant disclosed that the suspect when interrogated, admitted the alleged confinement of the children for months, but denied not feeding them and being responsible for their death.
The suspect was quoted as saying that his action was based on the children’s involvement in stealing, hence the need to ensure they are stopped from continuing with such.
He added that the suspect claimed that his two deceased children were taken to hospital for treatment at different times when they fell ill, but unfortunately died in the process.
He added, “What is however curious about his defense is that the hospital where he claimed the two children died in Ijebu Ode could neither be located.
“Where he allegedly buried them behind a rented apartment he lived in Ijebu-Ode before relocating to his present abode in Ibiade with the third child could also not be traced for possible exhumation.
“The fact that he refused to make the incidents known to any member of the family also gives course for concern more so when the suspect is a herbalist, thus further fuelling the suspicion of having killed the deceased for possible rituals.
“Consequently, the case is being transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for further investigation to establish further facts that will facilitate his prosecution.”
![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")
