Gangsters kill Italian priest

By Cyrus Ombati

A Catholic priest was yesterday killed in a robbery in Nairobi’s Langata area. Father Giuseppe Bertaina, a Consolata missionary, was in his office when the thugs attacked him.

Police said Bertaina, an Italian, was killed by suffocation.

"The gang may have thought he could raise alarm forcing them to tie his mouth using a tape. He died moments later," said a senior police officer officer in Nairobi.

The gang first attacked the guards and beat them up before locking them in one of the rooms.

They then proceeded to the priest’s offices where they escaped with goods of unknown value.

Langata deputy OCPD John Kirui said police mounted a search in the area immediately after being informed of the incident but no arrest has been made.

Father Bertaina became priest in 1951.