A Nigerian Catholic priest serving in the United States has died by suicide after reportedly expressing fears about returning to Nigeria following the expiration of his religious worker visa and a directive from his home diocese to return for a new assignment.
The Reverend Benjamin Okwy Madu, 54, 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.
Father Madu’s R-1 religious worker visa was due to expire on July 29. However, his home Diocese of Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, had instructed him to return to Nigeria before the expiration date to prepare for a new pastoral assignment scheduled to commence on August 4.
According to reports by the Boston Globe, the priest repeatedly expressed reluctance to return to Nigeria, citing concerns for his safety.
In remarks to parishioners weeks before his death and in a farewell message posted on his parish’s website, Madu disclosed that leaving the United States was not his decision.
“Returning home was not my wish, but circumstances beyond my control have warranted that my time in the United States come to an end,” he wrote.
The Boston Globe reported that the Sunday before his death, Father Madu suffered a panic attack while driving to celebrate Mass and was treated at a hospital emergency room.
Boston Archbishop Richard Henning later informed fellow priests in an internal email that the Nigerian cleric had “tragically took his own life,” according to a copy of the message cited by the National Catholic Register.
While the Archdiocese of Boston confirmed his death, its public statement did not specify suicide as the cause.
The Essex County District Attorney’s Office said the Massachusetts State Police were investigating the circumstances surrounding the death but noted that foul play was not suspected.
Meanwhile, the US-Nigeria Civil Society Coalition linked the priest’s emotional distress to fears of returning to a region plagued by insecurity and attacks on Catholic clergy.
In a statement released this week, the coalition said Father 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.”
“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,” the coalition stated.
Born on May 15, 1972, Father Madu was ordained at St. Theresa Cathedral in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State. He was just days away from celebrating the 25th anniversary of his priestly ordination on July 7.
He had ministered in the Archdiocese of Boston for nearly six years under successive R-1 religious worker visas.
Archdiocese spokesperson Terrence Donilon told the Boston Globe there was no available pathway to extend the priest’s visa under the current United States immigration policy affecting Nigerian nationals.
Parishioners said Father Madu had openly shared his fears about returning to Nigeria, where Catholic priests have increasingly become targets of kidnappings and violent attacks.
Arlene Lesch, a member of Holy Family Church, said she and other parishioners appealed to political leaders in an effort to secure permission for the priest to remain in the United States.
Following his death, the US-Nigeria Civil Society Coalition, alongside several Nigerian diaspora and Christian advocacy organisations, called on the US government to halt deportations of Nigerians and grant Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Nigerian nationals residing in the country.
