The remains of a young parishioner, simply identified as Kachi, was found hanging in the early hours of Friday inside the hall of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, Port Harcourt.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the development is causing panic among residents of the area.
NAN gathered that the deceased, an indigene of Imo, was a devoted Catholic and former Mass servant of the church.
Some parishioners at the scene told NAN that the deceased was a taxi driver who plied his trade at the popular Aggrey/Borokiri road in the city.
The parishioners expressed shock over the incident and wondered why the deceased would commit suicide, especially as he was considered a devoted Christian.
One of the parishioners who identified himself as Magnus, said that late Kachi was popularly known as Fabregas due to his football skills and dedication to youth activities in the church.
“Kachi, until his death, was about 20 years old; unmarried and a hard working young man who was loved.
“We tried to locate where he lived, but we were unable to do so due to the fact that he moved to a new apartment, which was unknown to us.
“As we speak, nobody has come out to say exactly why Kachi killed himself,” he said.
Another member of the church, who gave her name as Nkechi, alleged that the deceased took his life because the owner of the taxi retrieved the vehicle from him a few days ago.
“Kachi was not married and had been sleeping in the church hall.
“The taxi he drove was on hire-purchase and I learnt that the owner of the vehicle took back the car; maybe because he wasn’t meeting up with conditions of their agreement.
“I learnt that he took his life out of frustration caused by the seizure of the vehicle,” she said.
The Rivers Police Command had yet to confirm the report, as the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Omoni Nnamdi, did not answer calls or replied to messages sent to his cell phone by NAN.
The church authority have not commented on the development either.
Meanwhile, the corpse of the deceased has been taken to an undisclosed morgue in Port Harcourt. (Daily Post/NAN)
