Kampala: The remains of a Ugandan priest who traveled to Mexico as a missionary were found along with another 12 bodies in a clandestine grave there, religious officials said Friday.
The bodies were discovered on October 29 in the troubled southern state of Guerrero, a spokesman for the diocese of the state capital Chilpancingo told AFP on condition of anonymity.
"The remains of Father John Ssenyondo were fully identified," said the spokesman, who personally traveled with other priests of the dioceses to the coroner`s office to identify the body.
Ssenyondo was formally identified through his dentist, who provided a dental cast.
The priest, who was apparently was killed by a bullet in the head, was reported missing on April 30.
Residents who witnessed the kidnapping said that Ssenyondo was intercepted by a group of armed men while returning from a rural community where he had gone to celebrate mass.
He was apparently killed for refusing to baptize a child whose parents were not married.
According to the diocese spokesman, the pit full of bodies was found by villagers in the mountain community of Ocotitlan, more than 200 kilometers (125 miles) from Iguala, where the search continues for 43 students who went missing in late September after attacks by local police and drug gang gunmen.
But the pit was located near Ayotzinapa, home to the college where the youths studied.
The mass grave was found independently from the search for the missing students.
A Chilpancingo official said DNA tests have yet to be conducted on the remains that have been identified by the diocese as belonging to Ssenyondo.
