Priest reported missing in Leyte

Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!

Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.

Visit Suniway.ph to learn

December 26, 2025 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines —  The Archdiocese of Palo in Leyte is searching for Fr. Edwin “Kutz” Caintoy who has been reported missing since Dec. 23.

Fr. Gwen Lovelino Padagdag, archdiocesan chancellor, reported on Dec. 24 that Caintoy, one of the priests of the archdiocese, has been missing since Tuesday.

The 55-year-old Caintoy is the parish priest of San Jose de Malibago. He was last seen at a bus terminal near a shopping center in Tacloban City.

“He was last seen wearing a white clerical polo shirt and carrying a sling bag. His current whereabouts remain unknown. The archdiocese is coordinating closely with the authorities regarding this matter,” Padagdag said.

The archdiocese asked the Catholic faithful to include Caintoy in their prayers and contact Fr. Padagdag at 09282193275 if they have information on the priest’s whereabouts.

In a social media post, the archdiocese cited a Babat-ngon town police report that said Caintoy was last seen at 9:08 a.m. on Dec. 23.

He was reportedly seen traveling to Barangay 108 in Tagpuro, Tacloban City on an orange motorcycle driven by his altar boy.

At Tagpuro, Caintoy boarded a bus bound for Tacloban City, where he disembarked in front of the Our Lady of Guadalupe church along Quezon Boulevard.

A department store CCTV camera caught Caintoy walking toward a shopping center at 9:52 a.m. He has been missing since then.

The Babatngon police station issued a flash alarm to alert all neighboring security units.