Reverend Benjamin Okwy Madu, a 54-year-old Nigerian Catholic priest serving in Massachusetts, has died by suicide after previously expressing fears about returning to Nigeria. His death was announced by the Archdiocese of Boston, while authorities continue investigating the case.
Madu died on July 2 at his residence in Lynnfield, Massachusetts, according to the Archdiocese of Boston, where he had served as a hospital chaplain and parish priest on Cape Ann since 2021. His religious worker visa was due to expire on July 29, while his home Diocese of Abakaliki had directed him to return to Nigeria before then for a new assignment scheduled to begin on August 4.
According to reports, Madu had repeatedly said he did not want to return to Nigeria because he feared for his safety. In remarks to parishioners and in a farewell message posted on his parish’s website shortly before his death, he said his departure from the United States was beyond his control.
He wrote, “but circumstances beyond my control have warranted that my time in the United States come to an end.”
According to the Boston Globe, Madu suffered a panic attack while driving to celebrate Mass on the Sunday before his death and was treated at a hospital emergency room.
Boston Archbishop Richard Henning later informed fellow priests in an internal email that Madu had “tragically took his own life,” according to a copy of the message seen by the National Catholic Register. However, the Archdiocese of Boston’s public statement announcing his death did not describe it as a suicide.
The Essex County District Attorney’s Office confirmed that the Massachusetts State Police are investigating the death. A spokesperson said foul play was not suspected.
Reacting to the incident, the US-Nigeria Civil Society Coalition alleged that Madu endured severe emotional distress over the prospect of returning to Nigeria, where it said Catholic clergy have increasingly become victims of kidnappings and killings.
In a statement sent to news organisations, the coalition said Madu “suffered acute emotional distress and panic over the prospect of returning to a region where Catholic clergy are actively targeted for kidnapping and assassination,” adding that the suspension of his visa renewal under current US immigration restrictions contributed to the circumstances surrounding his death.
The coalition further stated, “The terrifying reality of these rigid restrictions was made plain on July 2, 2026, when Father Benjamin Okwy Madu, a beloved 54-year-old Nigerian Catholic priest serving the North Shore of Massachusetts, tragically took his own life.”
Born on May 15, 1972, Madu was ordained at St Theresa Cathedral, Abakaliki, in Ebonyi State. He would have marked the 25th anniversary of his priestly ordination on July 7, five days after his death.
The Boston Globe also reported that Archdiocese spokesperson Terrence Donilon said there was no avenue for extending Madu’s visa under the current US immigration policy affecting Nigeria. The priest had also spoken publicly about his fear of returning to Nigeria, citing the security situation in which Catholic priests have been kidnapped and killed in recent years. Parishioners appealed to political leaders in an effort to secure a way for him to remain in the United States, but those efforts were unsuccessful.
Ademide Adebayo
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