Maputo and Chimoio — Four men on Friday night murdered João Jofrisse, a pastor of the Apostolic Faith Mission, in the central Mozambican city of Chimoio.
The pastor was attacked in his own house, which doubles up as a church, in front of dozens of worshippers. Six shots were fired, two of which hit Jofrisse. He died before he could be taken to hospital.
His widow, Eugenia Chinhamandoa, said that their son was also shot, and is currently receiving medical treatment at the Manica Provincial Hospital in Chimoio.
Asked about the likely causes of the shooting, she raised the hypothesis that the crime resulted from disputes with other churches. Rival religious sects are competing for the same limited pool of believers.
Chinhamundoa said that in the recent past, a group of people had pursued her husband and physically assaulted him, knocking out some of his teeth. The case was reported to the police and the attackers ended up in court.
“I thought it was all over”, said the widow. “I didn’t imagine that this time they would use a gun to kill my husband. When they arrived, we thought they were people who had come to attend the service, We were shocked when we saw them take out a gun and open fire against my husband”.
The police have pledged that they will do all in their power to identify the murderers and bring them to justice. A spokesperson for the Manica Provincial Police Command, Elcidia Filipe, said the police are following up clues, but she declined to give any details for fear of compromising the investigations.