TULSA, Okla. (KJRH/NBCNC) – Friends and former classmates are mourning the loss of an American missionary that local officials believe was killed by an isolated tribe on an island in the Indian Ocean.
27-year-old John Chau was reportedly visiting a chain of islands in the Indian Ocean earlier this month.
Police say after the first visit to an island known for dangerous natives, he came back with arrow injuries, and after going back fisherman watched from a distance as tribespeople dragged his body.
Friends and former classmates of the Oral Roberts University alumni say they remember him for the positivity he brought wherever he went.
“His cheerfulness, his joy… we’ll never be able to get that back and that’s really hard,” said friend and former classmate John James. “He is… he was… just the best friend I could have, because of his loyalty and his trust and his honesty.”
James continued, “I haven’t come across somebody like that, that’s willing to just put his life on the line for Christ. That’s really what his goal was.”
Police have not confirmed Chau’s death.
Officers say they’re currently in the process of recovering the body.
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