INQUISITR.COM / News & Politics

Father Rene Robert Still Missing As Investigators Scale Back Search Efforts

By John Houck
Published on: 07:56 PST, Apr 18, 2016

Father Rene Robert disappeared under mysterious circumstances over a week ago. During the weekend, investigators launched an intensive search for the missing priest, but have since decided to scale back efforts and focus more on a specific area in Baldwin, Florida, just outside Jacksonville.

According to a CNN report, Father Robert vanished without a trace from St. Johns County, Florida, sometime on Sunday, April 10. The last time anyone heard from the missing priest was around 1 p.m. when he posted a Facebook message about visiting a friend at Orange Park Medical Center.

After Robert failed to show up at a prayer service on Monday and then again for a Tuesday funeral, church officials became concerned and called police. Officers went out to the priest’s home, but did not find anything unusual.

Several people close to Father Robert said it is entirely out of character for him to leave town without telling someone. As no one has heard from him in over a week, loved ones and police now fear Robert is a victim of foul play.

As reported previously by the Inquisitr, a 2012 Toyota Corolla belonging to Father Robert was found with weapons inside in Aiken, South Carolina. The car’s driver, Steven James Murray, was arrested by authorities after a short pursuit on foot.

Murray has been charged with fleeing and attempting to evade and police are trying to determine how he is connected to the priest’s disappearance. While the suspect lives in South Carolina, he is acquainted with Father Robert and has relatives living in Florida.

“We have accounts that Murray was in Father Robert’s presence for several days prior to his disappearance… we believe Murray took advantage of his kindness,” Commander Chuck Mulligan of the St. John’s Sheriff’s Office told CNN.

Murray is cooperating with investigators and has not yet been charged with any crime related to Robert’s disappearance. While his criminal record is extensive, including larceny, Murray has never been convicted of a violent crime.

Concerned members of the community were to join investigators in the search for the missing priest. While grateful, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office asked them not to participate.

“We appreciate all of the local support and offers for assistance, at this time, we are not asking for citizens’ or outside private agencies’ assistance in the search efforts,” said Public Information Officer Christian Hancock with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Department.

The vast majority of the current search is focused in a rural countryside area of Duval County, which is next to St. Johns County. Police are requesting local residents to be on the lookout for anything that looks out of the ordinary or suspicious.

“Check… property thoroughly, including wooded areas and around bodies of water,” the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office said in a recent statement.

Should something unusual be found, they also ask residents not to touch or disturb anything and call police right away. If Father Robert has been killed, authorities think he may have been buried somewhere in the area.

On Saturday, family members from New York attended a prayer vigil for Father Robert. Several dozen people gathered at San Sebastian Catholic Church in St. Augustine to pray for the safe return of the missing priest.

“We are going to find him and we’re going to bring him home,” said Robert’s sister Debbie Bedard. “That’s what I want to do is just bring him home.”

Although investigators have not been able to determine exactly what happened to the missing priest, family and community members remain positive and continue to maintain hope. Anyone with information related to the disappearance of Father Rene Robert are urged to contact the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office at 904-630-0500 or Florida Crime Stoppers at 866-845-TIPS.

[Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images]

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