Rev. Christiaan Kappes, the American priest who went missing last week in Greece, is alive and safe in a European country according to his family.
His sister, Nadia Kappes-Charcap, said to the Greek Reporter that the priest called his family on Monday morning to let them know that he and Ioanna Lekakou – his friend who was also missing – are safe somewhere in Europe and outside of Greece. The priest said he is getting ready for his return home to Indianapolis, Indiana.
The Kappes family, who together with Greek and American authorities, were trying to locate the priest for the last seven days was very relieved from the phone call, although Rev. Christiaan Kappes was not able to say much about the specific reason of his disappearance.
“I am sorry I worried you,” were the first words of the missing priest to his father.
“I am fine but Ioanna was ill and I needed to get her some medical help. We were travelling all this time and it was hard to call internationally, but now we are safe and I am ready to come home,” said the priest.
According to Nadia Kappes-Charcap, her brother had no idea that he was in the news and authorities were looking for him. When we told him he was surprised and he seemed to have no idea about all the news reports.
“We all have a ton of questions, but we were not able to ask during our short communication,” his sister said.
One day before he disappeared, father Kappes had called his parents in Indiana to tell them that he was trying to flee Greece with his translator and close friend, Ioanna Lekakou, because she was involved in a heated dispute over her family’s inheritance that had put their lives in jeopardy.
“If you don’t hear from me in 12 to 24 hours, I’m dead,” father Kappes had said in the last phone call to his family before he went missing.
Due to that phone call which occured a week ago, the family had fears for the priest’s life.
The priest had not contacted his family all last week and the family asked the authorities and the media to help locate her brother.
In a facebook page that the Kappes family is running, the priest’s sister sent a thank you message to all that helped in the investigation of her brother’s case. In that message she also thanks all authorities and expresses her eternal love for Greece and Greek people.
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