[PHOTOS] Body of slain Fr Allois Bett moved to Eldoret church for mass, public viewing

Escorted in a solemn procession by priests and Catholic faithful

by BY MATHEWS NDANYI

News02 June 2025 - 10:35

In Summary

Escorted in a solemn procession by priests and Catholic faithful, the body was received at the cathedral, where Bishop Dominic Kimengich led a three-to-four-hour mass in his honor.
According to the funeral programme, Father Bett’s body will then be transported by road to Holy Family Ol Lessos Parish in Nandi County for a night vigil ahead of his burial.

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The body of slain Catholic priest, Father Allois Cheruiyot Bett, was today removed from the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) morgue in Eldoret and taken to the Sacred Heart Cathedral for a mass and public viewing.

Escorted in a solemn procession by priests and Catholic faithful, the body was received at the cathedral, where Bishop Dominic Kimengich led a three-to-four-hour mass in his honor.

According to the funeral programme, Father Bett’s body will then be transported by road to Holy Family Ol Lessos Parish in Nandi County for a night vigil ahead of his burial.

Tomorrow, the body will be taken to St Michael’s Terige High School for public viewing and a final funeral mass.

Afterward, a procession will accompany the body to the cemetery at Ol Lessos Parish, where Father Bett will be laid to rest.

Top government officials and clergy are expected to attend the funeral activities.

Bishop Kimengich, who is presiding over the funeral, described the killing of Father Bett as a significant loss to the church and the community.

Father Bett was serving at St Mulumba Church in Tot, Kerio Valley, when he was shot dead by bandits two weeks ago as he returned from a Jumuiya mass in a nearby village.

“It is a big loss to the church and the community. We continue to demand justice for him. His killers must be brought to account,” said Bishop Kimengich.

Father Bett’s murder has sparked widespread condemnation and heightened tensions in Kerio Valley, where security operations are underway to arrest the killers.

In the wake of the killing, the Catholic Church has shut down its missionary work and stations in the region, including the Chesongoch Mission Hospital, which was the largest medical facility in the area.

More than 100 nurses and other medics have also been withdrawn from the region.