Terrorist group contacted Diocese saying they kidnapped former Alaska priest, church leader says

FAIRBANKS, Alaska (KTUU/KTVF) - The Diocese of Fairbanks says that they were contacted by a Nigerian Diocese informing them that a terrorist group in Africa had kidnapped a former Alaska priest in the country.

The militant Jihadist group Boko Haram, which the United States has deemed a terrorist organization, is considered responsible for kidnapping the Rev. Alphonsus Afina, who spent time in Fairbank and other Alaska communities, according to Rev. Robert Fath, Vicar General with the Catholic Diocese of Fairbanks.

“[Boko Haram] contacted the Auxiliary Bishop for the Diocese of Maiduguri, which is unusual. They typically don’t reach out to organizations unless they’re sending, you know, video of the execution of their prisoners,“ Fath said.

”So we’re hopeful that through our prayers, our intercessions, that will soften their hearts to release him.”

Members of the Catholic Diocese of Fairbanks gathered on Tuesday to pray for Afina’s release.

The mass, held at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Fairbanks, saw around 200 people attend in person, Fath said, adding that more took part virtually.

“There’s not much we can do in the situation that Father Alphonsus is in with the Boko Haram, and as the Bishop said [Tuesday] in his homily, the best thing we can do is pray,” Fath said. ”It’s the most powerful thing that we can do at this point; pray for his strength during this time of captivity and persecution, but also you know that he’ll hopefully, God willing, one day be freed.”

Afina came to Alaska from Maiduguri, Nigeria, in September 2017, and between then and 2024, he served multiple locations across Alaska, including Unalakleet and Nome, with Fairbanks acting as a home base for his operations, according to Fath.

When Afina first arrived in Fairbanks amid temperatures in the 40s above zero, Fath quoted him as saying “‘Father, it is so cold,’ and they said to him, ‘Just wait for a few months, Father, and you’ll see how cold it can get.’”

During his time in Fairbanks and around the state, Fath said Afina had a strong impact on those who had him as their pastor.

“He’s a man of great prayer, a man of great faith,” he said. “Very gregarious and happy individual. He ... always had a smile on his face and was always laughing, regaling us with stories from back in Nigeria.”

Last year, Afina was reassigned from Alaska back to Nigeria with the mission to establish a trauma center for victims of Boko Haram, Fath said.

Afina is believed to have been kidnapped in Nigeria, with word first coming to Fairbanks from Rev. Yakubu Aiden at St. Nicholas Catholic Church in North Pole on Monday and from former Fairbanks Bishop Chad Zielinski, who had been informed directly by Bishop Oliver Dashe Doeme in Nigeria.

Fath said Bishop Oliver in Nigeria is working with that country’s government and military to find out where Afina is being held.

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