A Nigerian Catholic priest in Massachusetts has died by suicide, just days after he was told to leave the United States and return to Nigeria, where he had repeatedly said he feared for his life.
Reverend Benjamin Okwy Madu, 54, died on July 2 at his home in Lynnfield, Massachusetts, the Archdiocese of Boston said. 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. However, the Boston Globe reported that his home Diocese of Abakaliki directed him to return to Nigeria before then for a new assignment beginning on August 4.
Madu had reportedly made it clear he did not want to return. Speaking to parishioners the previous month and in a farewell message posted on his parish’s website days before his death, he said going back was not his choice, “but circumstances beyond my control have warranted that my time in the United States come to an end.”
The Sunday before his death, Madu reportedly suffered a panic attack while driving to Mass and was treated at a hospital emergency room, a parishioner told the Boston Globe.
Boston Archbishop Richard Henning told fellow priests in an internal email that Madu had “tragically took his own life,” according to a copy seen by the National Catholic Register and reported on Monday. The Archdiocese’s public statement did not describe his death as a suicide.
Essex County District Attorney Paul Tucker’s office confirmed the Massachusetts State Police are investigating the death, but a spokesperson said foul play is not suspected.
The US-Nigeria Civil Society Coalition in a statement 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 frozen visa renewal process under current US immigration restrictions contributed to his death.
“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 said.
Born on May 15, 1972, in Nigeria, Madu was ordained at St Theresa Cathedral in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State. He would have celebrated 25 years as a priest on July 7, five days after his death.
He had served in the Archdiocese of Boston for nearly six years under consecutive R-1 religious worker visas. Boston Globe reported that Archdiocese spokesperson Terrence Donilon said there was no way to extend his latest visa because of current US immigration policy affecting Nigeria.
Madu had openly spoken about his fear of returning to Nigeria, where priests have faced kidnappings and killings in recent years. Parishioner Arlene Lesch told the Boston Globe she was among those who appealed to political leaders to help Madu remain in the US.
