Panaji, India - In a brutal incident that has sent shockwaves in the Archdiocese of Goa, a Catholic priest was found murdered on Saturday morning.
According to reports, Father Eusebio Ferrao, 61, the parish priest of St. Francis Church in Macasana in South Goa was found dead by Catholic parishioners on March 18 morning.
Catholics who came for the morning mass spotted the priest lying dead in the Church premises around 6.20 am, while the cook of the priest was found bound with ropes and gagged.
Since Father Ferrao did not turn up to celebrate the daily mass, a few Catholics went to the adjoining parish house to look for the priest.
But to their horror, they found the parish priest lying on the ground in the parish house. His cook was found locked inside a room.
The parishioners' suspect that on Friday night the priest's friends, who arrived from Uttar Pradesh and stayed the night with the priest might be involved in the crime.
Father Loiola Pereira, the Goa Archdiocesan spokesperson said on hearing the shocking news, Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrao, Archbishop Emeritus (Retired) Raul Gonsalves, Vicar General Remedius Fernandes, and scores of priests visited the scene of the crime.
The Archbishop also conducted a prayer service for the repose of the departed soul.
Father Valerian Vaz, director of Archdiocesan Social Service Centre and Caritas said, "The ghastly murder has shocked the people of peace-loving Goa. This is perhaps the first incident of its kind."
Father Vaz said the police had sealed the area and taken the cook into custody for investigation.
Police who have launched a manhunt for the murderers said no one has any clues about the priest's friends who reportedly stayed with him and their whereabouts.
There have been no arrests till now.
The police said they suspected the "guests" of the priest to be involved in the murder. A pillow was said to have been used to suffocate the priest to death.
The motive of the murder is not yet known, police added.
St. Francis Church, established in 1809 and located in the southern sub-province of Curtorim, is dedicated to the patron saint of Goa, St Francis Xavier.
Curtorim area was in the news recently for Hindu-Muslim riot over disputed place of worship of the Muslim community.