An American Christian missionary was shot and killed last week in Paraguay, the mission organization that sent him confirmed.
Wayne Goddard, 50, a missionary to the Ava Guaraní and Paī Tavyterã tribes for over 25 years, was gunned down on April 9.
Goddard served as a cross-cultural worker for Ethnos360, an international missions agency which trains and sends missionaries around the world to reach the unreached people groups, and worked with the mission agency's partner, Misión a Nuevas Tribus en el Paraguay, since 1994.
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“We feel deep sorrow and are mourning the loss of Wayne Goddard, one of our own," Ian Fallis, a spokesperson for Ethnos360, told Fox News. "Please join us in prayer for his family and the people he served and loved in Paraguay.
"We also want to recognize the sacrifice that Wayne made as he followed our Lord in willing service for more than two decades."
His funeral was held in Paraguay on Sunday and a memorial service is being planned for May in Nebraska. Goddard is survived by his brother and father.
One suspect is in custody in connection with his killing and the investigation is ongoing, according to local authorities.
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The mission group, founded as New Tribes Mission in 1942, has a global network of about 2,500 missionaries from a variety of evangelical churches serving in Africa, Latin America, and the Asia-Pacific region.