Possible links between these four cases go back to when Reynaldo Rivera was first reported dead in 1982. Notably, The Rio Grande Sun made a casual connection between his and Patrick Ryan's death in the former's obituary. Police in Montana and New Mexico — including Lieutenant Gilbert Ulibarri of the Santa Fe Police Department — felt that Rivera and John Kerrigan were likely victims of the same killer (per the Missoulian). And the similar nature of Ryan and Father Ben Carrier's deaths led to speculation that they were possibly murdered by the same man.
Inside Hook took the dots connecting Rivera to Ryan, Ryan to Carrier, and Rivera to Kerrigan and wove them around a fifth death — that of an unidentified man in southern garb who swallowed cyanide in the Sacred Heart Catholic Church of Boise, Idaho on December 4, 1982 before reaching the confessional. Per the Austin Chronicle, a 1993 report on Ryan led Detective Frank Richardson to follow a hunch based the Idaho man's belt buckle — one that suggested Ryan and Carrier were killed by a man they knew (the former possibly approached him for sex). It may have been the Idaho man, but Richardson was frank about lacking hard evidence.
The absence of evidence is also an issue in trying to tie Ryan and Carrier to Rivera and Kerrigan, or the two Franciscans to one another. After extensive investigation, Ulibarri came to the conclusion that there was no connection between Rivera's death and Kerrigan's disappearance (per KOB 4). The one firm fact connecting all four priests is that, as of January 2024, their deaths remain unsolved.
If you or someone you know may be the victim of child abuse, please contact the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child (1-800-422-4453) or contact their live chat services.
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
