‘Tremendous loss to all’ says bishop as priest gunned down

A COMMUNITY is in mourning following the murder of a priest in Central African Republic.

Father Crépin Martial Monga, vicar of the Catholic parish of St John the Baptist in Zémio, in eastern Central African Republic, was killed last night (Monday, 29th June 2026).

Gunmen allegedly gunned down the priest during the evening, but further details have not yet emerged. 

In a statement from the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM), seen by Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), Bishop Aurelio Gazzera of Bangassou Diocese, praised the priest’s commitment to peace and reconciliation in the region.

He said: “This is a tremendous loss for the local community and for the Diocese of Bangassou.” 

SECAM said ongoing violence in Zémio – gunfire could still be heard at the time of the bishop’s statement – made “it difficult to obtain precise information about the circumstances of the attack”.

Bishop Gazzera, a 63-year-old Italian Carmelite priest, is an ACN project partner who has worked as a missionary in the country for 35 years, which has been repeatedly plagued by violence and unrest.

He is internationally recognised for his work carrying out peace negotiations with various armed groups.