Fr. Allois Cheruiyot Bett. Credit: Fr. Ugochukwu Ugwoke, ISch / X
A priest from the diocese of Eldoret, Kenya, was murdered May 22 by gunmen who ambushed him, according to reports.
Kahawa Tungu reported that at least six suspects have been arrested in the investigation of the murder of local parish priest, Father Allois Cheruiyot Bett. Fr. Bett was killed in Tuto, Kerio Valley, according to the outlet Tuko.
The outlet reports that Fr. Bett had celebrated his second anniversary of becoming a priest in November 2024.
Michael Muchiri, a spokesperson for the National Police Service, said that a manhunt ensued immediately for Fr. Bett’s murderers and that the initial investigation “indicates that the incident is not in any way related to cattle rustling or banditry.”
Kenyan President William Ruto denounced the violence and offered condolences for Fr. Bett’s friends and family.
“Fr. Allois was a tireless promoter of peace and a true faith leader whose sermons were genuine, clear and targeted,” Ruto said in a statement on social media, according to a May 23 article by Citizen Digital. “May God grant the family and friends strength to bear this painful death… We will hunt down his killers as we commit to restore peace in the Kerio Valley. Rest In Peace, Father.”
According to Tuko, Fr. Bett generously served his community. He would minister in remote villages, and he was admired by many for his commitment to education and pastoral services.
Nigerian priest Father Ugochukwu Ugwoke, ISch, spoke out on X about the murder of Fr. Bett, whom he described as a missionary for his service to those in a rural region.
“As a missionary, this priest left the comfort of home to serve the Gospel in a place many would avoid,” Fr. Ugwoke wrote. “He chose the poor. He embraced the forgotten. He gave his life to Christ and his people. And what did he get in return? A violent death. What do you really gain by killing a priest?”
“This tragedy is not isolated,” he continued. “In Nigeria, my own country, priests have become endangered species and are being hunted down like threats. In recent years, some have been burnt to death, many shot to death, and others abducted and tortured to death. The blood of priests has become familiar with our soil.”
However, he continued, people must understand that priests are already victims by virtue of configuring themselves, at ordination, to Christ the High Priest.
“To be a priest therefore is to live in constant self-offering — an immolation at the altar of service,” he said.
He said that to kill a priest is to kill a man who has “buried himself in broken villages, who fed children, who raised altars where hope was scarce. You murder a man whose weapon is the Word and whose power is prayer… To kill a priest is to wage war on mercy, to tear down the very hand reaching out to lift the wounded.”
Addressing those who are violent against priests, Fr. Ugwoke urged them to know that killing priests will not bring an end to the priesthood; God will continue to raise up priests.
“May the soul of that young priest in Kenya, and all the slain priests across Africa, rest in the peace of Christ,” he concluded. “And may their deaths stir and awaken us — Church and society — to defend those who defend our hope and to stop this blood because you gain absolutely nothing by killing a priest.”