an American missionary was discovered murdered in his Riga apartment. Police in the former Soviet republic said the 49-year old missionary, whose name was not yet identified, was found with a knife plunged in his chest and what appeared to be strangulation marks around his throat.
Investigators found the victim’s apartment in disarray and suspect he may have been robbed, The Associated Press (AP) reported. The missionary had been living in Latvia over two years.
There are Mormon, Baptist, and Jehovah’s Witnesses missionaries working in Latvia, AP said. Most of the country’s 2.3 million residents are believed to be Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, or Catholic.
ENCOURAGE PRAYER
Evangelistic Ministry (EM) said it hopes the killing will encourage all Christians and churches worldwide the world to pray for missionaries all around the world on Sunday, November 7, the ASSIST News Service (ANS) reported.
EM President Gregg W. Anderson, who has been making trips to the Soviet bloc nations for over a decade, told ANS he had never experienced any problems while in Latvia as he ministers inside prisons.
"I am shocked and puzzled at this atrocious crime," he reportedly said. "I am asking the Christian community to pray during worship services this Sunday and especially for this man’s friends and his family."
