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Mormon missionary killed in Samoa

A 21-year-old Mormon missionary serving in Samoa was hit and killed by a vehicle. the LDS Church announced Sunday.

Aaron Ahkau Matapa Patiole, who is from Australia, was walking with his companion in Upolu when he was struck.

Patiole had been serving since December 2016, according to Eric Hawkins, a spokesman for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Samoa, a Pacific Islands nation of about 200,000, has nearly 80,000 Mormons, more than 150 LDS congregations and a temple in Apia that was rebuilt after it burned down in 2003, according to the Utah-based faith’s website.