The body of former Dundee priest Father Jean-Pierre Ndulani, who was kidnapped by rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo, has reportedly been found in his homeland.
Father Ndulani who spent six years with the Diocese of Dunkeld in Dundee, is believed to have been discovered in a mass grave, reports say.
The popular priest was kidnapped at gunpoint along with two other priests on October 19 2012, by rebel forces in the war-torn country shortly after arriving back there from Dundee.
Although reports came through that a reward had been paid for their release, the three priests were never set free by their captors.
Malcolm Field of the Diocese of Dunkeld said the news, although not entirely surprising to those in Dundee who knew him, was “very, very sad”.
“All we know is what we have heard, there’s nothing official I don’t think, other than a notification from the Assumptionists.
“Father Ndulani was a member of the Assumptionists Church. If it’s true, it is awful. I think if we were honest we all suspected it might happen, but it’s tragic.
“He was a lovely man, it doesn’t bear thinking about.”
Mother Marie-Aimee, mother superior at Wellburn Home, where Fr Ndulani spent six years, received an email from the DRC with information indicating the Assumptionist Father had been found in a mass grave with two other priests.
The email she received states that Saambili Bamukoka, chief of the local Watalinga-Kamango, believes the hostages taken by ADF-NALU have been slaughtered by the rebels in the aftermath of a DRC army victory over rebel groups.
“We regret the discovery of mass graves at Mukakati,” Saambili Bamukoka said.
“Many people that we presume to be hostages, they were shot, they were slaughtered.”
The email also states: “This information does not leave the Assumptionists with any hope of recovering their three kidnapped priests.”
Though official confirmation has not yet been received, this news will cause great upset in the Diocese of Dunkeld where Fr Ndulani was a much-loved priest.
He spent six years working in Lochee at Wellburn Home, which is run by the Little Sisters of the Poor, before returning home in August 2012.
Within weeks he and two other priests were kidnapped by armed men.
Hopes of their freedom were dashed in January, despite a ransom being paid, and their whereabouts remained a mystery until Friday’s news of the grim discovery of their bodies.
Dundee West MP Jim McGovern, who had campaigned for the release of the priest, said: “I had the privilege of helping Father Jean-Pierre in his initial attempts to gain a visa in order to serve the Wellburn Home back in 2005.
“It was with great shock that I learned of this news and it is indeed a profoundly sorrowful moment.
“Father Jean-Pierre was a man who was filled with compassion, integrity and a strong and committed desire to serve the people of his parish.
“It is with these qualities in mind that the news is made even more poignant.”