Extremist groups could be responsible for disappearance of Catholic priest

Mindanao: A Roman Catholic priest has been reported missing in the southern Philippines since December 31, authorities said, adding that relatives and colleagues have expressed fear he might have been abducted by militants.

"Father Lucio Bola, 46, has no known enemies, but he is vulnerable to terrorist abduction," said Monsignor Elmer Abacahin, spokesman of the archdiocese of Cagayan De Oro, where Bola belongs.

"Father Bola did not show up at a religious event that he was supposed to attend on December 31," said Abacahin, adding that was the priest's intention upon returning to his hometown in Balingasa, Mindanao.

"His relatives reported the incident after his disappearance on December 31," said Vicente Emano, mayor of Cagayan de Oro.

"We have been looking into members of groups who were reportedly stalking the Catholic priest for the past several months," explained Provincial police director Superintendent Lyndel Desquitado.

He refused to identify the groups that could have been responsible for the priest's abduction.

The Abu Sayyaf Group has previously been accused of kidnapping Christian clergymen in Mindanao.