Father Ramón Arturo Montejo Peinado, parish priest of San José, in Buenavista, Colombia, lost his life in a robbery, on June 4th. Hundreds of priests, and numerous faithful, attended the funeral, held on June 6th, in his hometown of Teorama.
The attack on Father Montejo, took place in a parking lot, in Ocaña, Norte de Santander, where the priest had left his vehicle.
According to witnesses, and security camera footage, the 45-year-old priest was approached by two people who ordered him to get out of the vehicle. When Father Montejo tried to resist, the perpetrators stabbed him twice, in the back, then threw him out of the vehicle and ran over him with the same vehicle. The Colombian police say they have arrested the men believed to be responsible for the priest's murder. They are two people of Venezuelan nationality.
Born in the parish of Teorama, Father Montejo was parish priest in San José de Buenavista, and delegate, of the Diocesan Commission for Reconciliation and Peace. The Catholic priest was known in the Catatumbo region, for participating in humanitarian missions that led to the release of several kidnapped people.
For this reason, Monsignor Soto asked the authorities to fully clarify the circumstances of his murder. Colonel Néstor Arévalo, commander of the Norte de Santander Police Directorate, assured that the investigation is continuing, since one of the people arrested was apparently an acquaintance of the priest who had been invited to a meeting at the place where he was killed.
Source: Agenzia Fides
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