A Seventh-day Adventist pastor, his wife and their son were attacked and killed at their home near a church mission academy in Babelthaup, Palau. A daughter was injured in the attack and remains hospitalized.
A Seventh-day Adventist pastor, his wife and their son were attacked and killed at their home near a church mission academy in Babelthaup, Palau. A daughter was injured in the attack and remains hospitalized.
Pastor Ruimar Duarte DePaiva, 42, his wife, Margareth Ottoni DePaiva, 37 and their son Larisson Ottoni DePaiva, 11, were killed, authorities and regional church officials said. Ten-year-old Melissa Ottoni DePaiva was hospitalized with undisclosed injuries.
The parents of the murdered family have been advised of the situation. Officers of the Adventist Church’s Guam/Micronesia mission say workers are en route to Palau to support the daughter and care for the situation.
The DePavia family had served on Palau for only 17 months. He had served as a pastor of the Koror Seventh-day Adventist Church there.
Pastor Jan Paulsen, president of the world church, and Pastor Matthew Bediako, world church secretary, have sent their condolences on behalf of the church worldwide. They ask that church members keep this family and the members of the Koror church in their prayers.
