{"id":16353,"date":"2016-10-06T20:45:00","date_gmt":"2016-10-06T20:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/news\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead-80785\/"},"modified":"2016-10-06T20:45:00","modified_gmt":"2016-10-06T20:45:00","slug":"argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/10\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead\/","title":{"rendered":"Argentine priest who denounced drug traffickers found dead"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

<\/p>\n

San Miguel de Tucum\u00e1n, Argentina, Oct 6, 2016 \/ 02:45 pm (CNA\/EWTN News<\/a>).- A priest in the northern Argentine city of San Miguel de Tucum\u00e1n who in recent days denounced drug traffickers in his homilies was found dead in his rectory on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

The body of Father Juan Heraldo Viroche, 46, was found hanged Oct. 5 in his room at Our Lady of the Valley rectory. Police reported finding his belongings scattered on the floor.<\/p>\n

The court has ordered an autopsy on the priest's body to establish the cause of death.<\/p>\n

Hallaron muerto al sacerdote Juan Viroche (46) quien hab\u00eda denunciado el accionar de bandas de narcos en Tucum\u00e1n https:\/\/t.co\/V8Z9Ibe2Dx<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/iOVBftTJqm<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 DiarioJornadaChubut (@JornadaWeb) October 5, 2016<\/a><\/p>\n

The parish faithful said that days before, the priest had expressed his concern over threats received because of his denunciations of the gangs engaged in selling drugs.<\/p>\n

One of Fr. Viroche's actions was to say a Mass in November 2015 calling for a people free of drugs and thefts in Delf\u00edn Gallo, a rural settlement just 10 miles southeast of San Miguel de Tucum\u00e1n.<\/p>\n

Also, because of the repeated thefts in the last year, the priest decided to put a fence around the church and the blamed criminal activity on the growing drug trafficking which he said corrupts teens and young adults in the area.<\/p>\n

The Archdiocese of Tucum\u00e1n issued a statement lamenting Fr. Viroche's death and adding: \u201cWe expect prompt clarification of the facts and trust in the action of the justice system, with which of course we will be cooperating in everything that depends on us.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Tucum\u00e1n archdiocese added that they join with the priest's family and the parish faithful in \u201ctheir grief over the loss of their pastor\u201d and commended Fr. Viroche \u201cto the mercy of God, that the Lord may welcome him into heaven.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sustained threats against the priest by drug gangs led him to ask to be transferred, which had already been authorized. However, the priest wanted to finish the novena he had started in the community, Archbishop Alfredo Zecca of Tucum\u00e1n said.<\/p>\n

The Argentine bishops' conference also expressed their \u201csorrow and dismay over the death\u201d of Fr. Viroche, and asked for a \u201cprompt clarification of the facts.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe ask God to welcome into his home our brother, Fr. Juan, and may his life and ministry be for the Church a priestly witness that encourages everyone to continue to work for a more fraternal society in the service of the most vulnerable,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n

\n<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina, Oct 6, 2016 \/ 02:45 pm (CNA\/EWTN News<\/a>).- A priest in the northern Argentine city of San Miguel de Tucumán who in recent days denounced drug traffickers in his homilies was found dead in his rectory on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

The body of Father Juan Heraldo Viroche, 46, was found hanged Oct. 5 in his room at Our Lady of the Valley rectory. Police reported finding his belongings scattered on the floor.<\/p>\n

The court has ordered an autopsy on the priest’s body to establish the cause of death.<\/p>\n

Hallaron muerto al sacerdote Juan Viroche (46) quien había denunciado el accionar de bandas de narcos en Tucumán https:\/\/t.co\/V8Z9Ibe2Dx<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/iOVBftTJqm<\/a><\/p>\n

— DiarioJornadaChubut (@JornadaWeb) October 5, 2016<\/a><\/p>\n

The parish faithful said that days before, the priest had expressed his concern over threats received because of his denunciations of the gangs engaged in selling drugs.<\/p>\n

One of Fr. Viroche’s actions was to say a Mass in November 2015 calling for a people free of drugs and thefts in Delfín Gallo, a rural settlement just 10 miles southeast of San Miguel de Tucumán.<\/p>\n

Also, because of the repeated thefts in the last year, the priest decided to put a fence around the church and the blamed criminal activity on the growing drug trafficking which he said corrupts teens and young adults in the area.<\/p>\n

The Archdiocese of Tucumán issued a statement lamenting Fr. Viroche’s death and adding: “We expect prompt clarification of the facts and trust in the action of the justice system, with which of course we will be cooperating in everything that depends on us.”<\/p>\n

The Tucumán archdiocese added that they join with the priest’s family and the parish faithful in “their grief over the loss of their pastor” and commended Fr. Viroche “to the mercy of God, that the Lord may welcome him into heaven.”<\/p>\n

Sustained threats against the priest by drug gangs led him to ask to be transferred, which had already been authorized. However, the priest wanted to finish the novena he had started in the community, Archbishop Alfredo Zecca of Tucumán said.<\/p>\n

The Argentine bishops’ conference also expressed their “sorrow and dismay over the death” of Fr. Viroche, and asked for a “prompt clarification of the facts.”<\/p>\n

“We ask God to welcome into his home our brother, Fr. Juan, and may his life and ministry be for the Church a priestly witness that encourages everyone to continue to work for a more fraternal society in the service of the most vulnerable,” they said.<\/p>\n

\n<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1031,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16353","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-americas"],"yoast_head":"\nArgentine priest who denounced drug traffickers found dead<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina, Oct 6, 2016 \/ 02:45 pm (CNA\/EWTN News).- A priest in the northern Argentine city of San Miguel de Tucumán who in recent days denounced drug traffickers in his homilies was found dead in his rectory on Wednesday. The body of Father Juan Heraldo Viroche, 46, was found hanged Oct. 5 in his room at Our Lady of the Valley rectory. Police reported finding his belongings scattered on the floor. The court has ordered an autopsy on the priest's body to establish the cause of death. Hallaron muerto al sacerdote Juan Viroche (46) quien había denunciado el accionar de bandas de narcos en Tucumán https:\/\/t.co\/V8Z9Ibe2Dx pic.twitter.com\/iOVBftTJqm — DiarioJornadaChubut (@JornadaWeb) October 5, 2016 The parish faithful said that days before, the priest had expressed his concern over threats received because of his denunciations of the gangs engaged in selling drugs. One of Fr. Viroche's actions was to say a Mass in November 2015 calling for a people free of drugs and thefts in Delfín Gallo, a rural settlement just 10 miles southeast of San Miguel de Tucumán. Also, because of the repeated thefts in the last year, the priest decided to put a fence around the church and the blamed criminal activity on the growing drug trafficking which he said corrupts teens and young adults in the area. The Archdiocese of Tucumán issued a statement lamenting Fr. Viroche's death and adding: “We expect prompt clarification of the facts and trust in the action of the justice system, with which of course we will be cooperating in everything that depends on us.” The Tucumán archdiocese added that they join with the priest's family and the parish faithful in “their grief over the loss of their pastor” and commended Fr. Viroche “to the mercy of God, that the Lord may welcome him into heaven.” Sustained threats against the priest by drug gangs led him to ask to be transferred, which had already been authorized. However, the priest wanted to finish the novena he had started in the community, Archbishop Alfredo Zecca of Tucumán said. The Argentine bishops' conference also expressed their “sorrow and dismay over the death” of Fr. Viroche, and asked for a “prompt clarification of the facts.” “We ask God to welcome into his home our brother, Fr. Juan, and may his life and ministry be for the Church a priestly witness that encourages everyone to continue to work for a more fraternal society in the service of the most vulnerable,” they said.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/10\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Argentine priest who denounced drug traffickers found dead\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina, Oct 6, 2016 \/ 02:45 pm (CNA\/EWTN News).- A priest in the northern Argentine city of San Miguel de Tucumán who in recent days denounced drug traffickers in his homilies was found dead in his rectory on Wednesday. The body of Father Juan Heraldo Viroche, 46, was found hanged Oct. 5 in his room at Our Lady of the Valley rectory. Police reported finding his belongings scattered on the floor. The court has ordered an autopsy on the priest's body to establish the cause of death. Hallaron muerto al sacerdote Juan Viroche (46) quien había denunciado el accionar de bandas de narcos en Tucumán https:\/\/t.co\/V8Z9Ibe2Dx pic.twitter.com\/iOVBftTJqm — DiarioJornadaChubut (@JornadaWeb) October 5, 2016 The parish faithful said that days before, the priest had expressed his concern over threats received because of his denunciations of the gangs engaged in selling drugs. One of Fr. Viroche's actions was to say a Mass in November 2015 calling for a people free of drugs and thefts in Delfín Gallo, a rural settlement just 10 miles southeast of San Miguel de Tucumán. Also, because of the repeated thefts in the last year, the priest decided to put a fence around the church and the blamed criminal activity on the growing drug trafficking which he said corrupts teens and young adults in the area. The Archdiocese of Tucumán issued a statement lamenting Fr. Viroche's death and adding: “We expect prompt clarification of the facts and trust in the action of the justice system, with which of course we will be cooperating in everything that depends on us.” The Tucumán archdiocese added that they join with the priest's family and the parish faithful in “their grief over the loss of their pastor” and commended Fr. Viroche “to the mercy of God, that the Lord may welcome him into heaven.” Sustained threats against the priest by drug gangs led him to ask to be transferred, which had already been authorized. However, the priest wanted to finish the novena he had started in the community, Archbishop Alfredo Zecca of Tucumán said. The Argentine bishops' conference also expressed their “sorrow and dismay over the death” of Fr. Viroche, and asked for a “prompt clarification of the facts.” “We ask God to welcome into his home our brother, Fr. Juan, and may his life and ministry be for the Church a priestly witness that encourages everyone to continue to work for a more fraternal society in the service of the most vulnerable,” they said.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/10\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Catholic News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-10-06T20:45:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/images\/size340\/Confiscated_drugs_and_money_in_Argentina_Credit_Ministerio_de_Seguridad_Argentina_via_Flickr_CC_BY_NC_ND_20_CNA_12_2_15.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"CNA Daily News\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"CNA Daily News\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/10\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/10\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead\/\",\"name\":\"Argentine priest who denounced drug traffickers found dead\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2016-10-06T20:45:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2016-10-06T20:45:00+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#\/schema\/person\/35d4bd7addc580050842c844a11575f1\"},\"description\":\"San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina, Oct 6, 2016 \/ 02:45 pm (CNA\/EWTN News).- A priest in the northern Argentine city of San Miguel de Tucumán who in recent days denounced drug traffickers in his homilies was found dead in his rectory on Wednesday. The body of Father Juan Heraldo Viroche, 46, was found hanged Oct. 5 in his room at Our Lady of the Valley rectory. Police reported finding his belongings scattered on the floor. The court has ordered an autopsy on the priest's body to establish the cause of death. Hallaron muerto al sacerdote Juan Viroche (46) quien había denunciado el accionar de bandas de narcos en Tucumán https:\/\/t.co\/V8Z9Ibe2Dx pic.twitter.com\/iOVBftTJqm — DiarioJornadaChubut (@JornadaWeb) October 5, 2016 The parish faithful said that days before, the priest had expressed his concern over threats received because of his denunciations of the gangs engaged in selling drugs. One of Fr. Viroche's actions was to say a Mass in November 2015 calling for a people free of drugs and thefts in Delfín Gallo, a rural settlement just 10 miles southeast of San Miguel de Tucumán. Also, because of the repeated thefts in the last year, the priest decided to put a fence around the church and the blamed criminal activity on the growing drug trafficking which he said corrupts teens and young adults in the area. The Archdiocese of Tucumán issued a statement lamenting Fr. Viroche's death and adding: “We expect prompt clarification of the facts and trust in the action of the justice system, with which of course we will be cooperating in everything that depends on us.” The Tucumán archdiocese added that they join with the priest's family and the parish faithful in “their grief over the loss of their pastor” and commended Fr. Viroche “to the mercy of God, that the Lord may welcome him into heaven.” Sustained threats against the priest by drug gangs led him to ask to be transferred, which had already been authorized. However, the priest wanted to finish the novena he had started in the community, Archbishop Alfredo Zecca of Tucumán said. The Argentine bishops' conference also expressed their “sorrow and dismay over the death” of Fr. Viroche, and asked for a “prompt clarification of the facts.” “We ask God to welcome into his home our brother, Fr. Juan, and may his life and ministry be for the Church a priestly witness that encourages everyone to continue to work for a more fraternal society in the service of the most vulnerable,” they said.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/10\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/10\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/10\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Argentine priest who denounced drug traffickers found dead\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/\",\"name\":\"Catholic News\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#\/schema\/person\/35d4bd7addc580050842c844a11575f1\",\"name\":\"CNA Daily News\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8f1180c7dca7995d4a997aac72a3a88a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8f1180c7dca7995d4a997aac72a3a88a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"CNA Daily News\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/author\/cna-daily-news\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Argentine priest who denounced drug traffickers found dead","description":"San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina, Oct 6, 2016 \/ 02:45 pm (CNA\/EWTN News).- A priest in the northern Argentine city of San Miguel de Tucumán who in recent days denounced drug traffickers in his homilies was found dead in his rectory on Wednesday. The body of Father Juan Heraldo Viroche, 46, was found hanged Oct. 5 in his room at Our Lady of the Valley rectory. Police reported finding his belongings scattered on the floor. The court has ordered an autopsy on the priest's body to establish the cause of death. Hallaron muerto al sacerdote Juan Viroche (46) quien había denunciado el accionar de bandas de narcos en Tucumán https:\/\/t.co\/V8Z9Ibe2Dx pic.twitter.com\/iOVBftTJqm — DiarioJornadaChubut (@JornadaWeb) October 5, 2016 The parish faithful said that days before, the priest had expressed his concern over threats received because of his denunciations of the gangs engaged in selling drugs. One of Fr. Viroche's actions was to say a Mass in November 2015 calling for a people free of drugs and thefts in Delfín Gallo, a rural settlement just 10 miles southeast of San Miguel de Tucumán. Also, because of the repeated thefts in the last year, the priest decided to put a fence around the church and the blamed criminal activity on the growing drug trafficking which he said corrupts teens and young adults in the area. The Archdiocese of Tucumán issued a statement lamenting Fr. Viroche's death and adding: “We expect prompt clarification of the facts and trust in the action of the justice system, with which of course we will be cooperating in everything that depends on us.” The Tucumán archdiocese added that they join with the priest's family and the parish faithful in “their grief over the loss of their pastor” and commended Fr. Viroche “to the mercy of God, that the Lord may welcome him into heaven.” Sustained threats against the priest by drug gangs led him to ask to be transferred, which had already been authorized. However, the priest wanted to finish the novena he had started in the community, Archbishop Alfredo Zecca of Tucumán said. The Argentine bishops' conference also expressed their “sorrow and dismay over the death” of Fr. Viroche, and asked for a “prompt clarification of the facts.” “We ask God to welcome into his home our brother, Fr. Juan, and may his life and ministry be for the Church a priestly witness that encourages everyone to continue to work for a more fraternal society in the service of the most vulnerable,” they said.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/10\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Argentine priest who denounced drug traffickers found dead","og_description":"San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina, Oct 6, 2016 \/ 02:45 pm (CNA\/EWTN News).- A priest in the northern Argentine city of San Miguel de Tucumán who in recent days denounced drug traffickers in his homilies was found dead in his rectory on Wednesday. The body of Father Juan Heraldo Viroche, 46, was found hanged Oct. 5 in his room at Our Lady of the Valley rectory. Police reported finding his belongings scattered on the floor. The court has ordered an autopsy on the priest's body to establish the cause of death. Hallaron muerto al sacerdote Juan Viroche (46) quien había denunciado el accionar de bandas de narcos en Tucumán https:\/\/t.co\/V8Z9Ibe2Dx pic.twitter.com\/iOVBftTJqm — DiarioJornadaChubut (@JornadaWeb) October 5, 2016 The parish faithful said that days before, the priest had expressed his concern over threats received because of his denunciations of the gangs engaged in selling drugs. One of Fr. Viroche's actions was to say a Mass in November 2015 calling for a people free of drugs and thefts in Delfín Gallo, a rural settlement just 10 miles southeast of San Miguel de Tucumán. Also, because of the repeated thefts in the last year, the priest decided to put a fence around the church and the blamed criminal activity on the growing drug trafficking which he said corrupts teens and young adults in the area. The Archdiocese of Tucumán issued a statement lamenting Fr. Viroche's death and adding: “We expect prompt clarification of the facts and trust in the action of the justice system, with which of course we will be cooperating in everything that depends on us.” The Tucumán archdiocese added that they join with the priest's family and the parish faithful in “their grief over the loss of their pastor” and commended Fr. Viroche “to the mercy of God, that the Lord may welcome him into heaven.” Sustained threats against the priest by drug gangs led him to ask to be transferred, which had already been authorized. However, the priest wanted to finish the novena he had started in the community, Archbishop Alfredo Zecca of Tucumán said. The Argentine bishops' conference also expressed their “sorrow and dismay over the death” of Fr. Viroche, and asked for a “prompt clarification of the facts.” “We ask God to welcome into his home our brother, Fr. Juan, and may his life and ministry be for the Church a priestly witness that encourages everyone to continue to work for a more fraternal society in the service of the most vulnerable,” they said.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/10\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead\/","og_site_name":"Catholic News","article_published_time":"2016-10-06T20:45:00+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/images\/size340\/Confiscated_drugs_and_money_in_Argentina_Credit_Ministerio_de_Seguridad_Argentina_via_Flickr_CC_BY_NC_ND_20_CNA_12_2_15.jpg"}],"author":"CNA Daily News","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"CNA Daily News","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/10\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead\/","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/10\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead\/","name":"Argentine priest who denounced drug traffickers found dead","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#website"},"datePublished":"2016-10-06T20:45:00+00:00","dateModified":"2016-10-06T20:45:00+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#\/schema\/person\/35d4bd7addc580050842c844a11575f1"},"description":"San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina, Oct 6, 2016 \/ 02:45 pm (CNA\/EWTN News).- A priest in the northern Argentine city of San Miguel de Tucumán who in recent days denounced drug traffickers in his homilies was found dead in his rectory on Wednesday. The body of Father Juan Heraldo Viroche, 46, was found hanged Oct. 5 in his room at Our Lady of the Valley rectory. Police reported finding his belongings scattered on the floor. The court has ordered an autopsy on the priest's body to establish the cause of death. Hallaron muerto al sacerdote Juan Viroche (46) quien había denunciado el accionar de bandas de narcos en Tucumán https:\/\/t.co\/V8Z9Ibe2Dx pic.twitter.com\/iOVBftTJqm — DiarioJornadaChubut (@JornadaWeb) October 5, 2016 The parish faithful said that days before, the priest had expressed his concern over threats received because of his denunciations of the gangs engaged in selling drugs. One of Fr. Viroche's actions was to say a Mass in November 2015 calling for a people free of drugs and thefts in Delfín Gallo, a rural settlement just 10 miles southeast of San Miguel de Tucumán. Also, because of the repeated thefts in the last year, the priest decided to put a fence around the church and the blamed criminal activity on the growing drug trafficking which he said corrupts teens and young adults in the area. The Archdiocese of Tucumán issued a statement lamenting Fr. Viroche's death and adding: “We expect prompt clarification of the facts and trust in the action of the justice system, with which of course we will be cooperating in everything that depends on us.” The Tucumán archdiocese added that they join with the priest's family and the parish faithful in “their grief over the loss of their pastor” and commended Fr. Viroche “to the mercy of God, that the Lord may welcome him into heaven.” Sustained threats against the priest by drug gangs led him to ask to be transferred, which had already been authorized. However, the priest wanted to finish the novena he had started in the community, Archbishop Alfredo Zecca of Tucumán said. The Argentine bishops' conference also expressed their “sorrow and dismay over the death” of Fr. Viroche, and asked for a “prompt clarification of the facts.” “We ask God to welcome into his home our brother, Fr. Juan, and may his life and ministry be for the Church a priestly witness that encourages everyone to continue to work for a more fraternal society in the service of the most vulnerable,” they said.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/10\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/10\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/10\/argentine-priest-who-denounced-drug-traffickers-found-dead\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Argentine priest who denounced drug traffickers found dead"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/","name":"Catholic News","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#\/schema\/person\/35d4bd7addc580050842c844a11575f1","name":"CNA Daily News","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8f1180c7dca7995d4a997aac72a3a88a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8f1180c7dca7995d4a997aac72a3a88a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"CNA Daily News"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/author\/cna-daily-news\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16353","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1031"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16353"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16353\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16353"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16353"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16353"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}