Police arrested a man in relation to the murder of a Catholic priest on Thursday in the Archdiocese of Kansas City, Kansas (United States).
Gary Hermesch was arrested and transferred to the Nemaha County prison under suspicion of first degree murder for the shooting of P. Aul Carasala, according to the Nemaha County Sheriff Office.
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Fr. Carasala was shot in the Catholic Church of St. Peter and St. Paul in Seneca, on Thursday afternoon. The priest later died at the Community Hospital of the Valle de Nemaha because of the wounds suffered, according to a Press statement from the Kansas Investigation Office.
The reason for the shooting was not clear until Friday afternoon. A parish employee declaró a Associated Press that “an older man approached (Carasala) and shot him three times.”
Hermesch, 66, would be a resident of Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Until Friday, the Kansas Research Office and the Nemaha Sheriff’s office were investigating the shooting.
Kansas City Archbishop, Mons. Joseph Naumann, said in a Facebook publication that Fr. Carasala “was a devout and jealous shepherd who faithfully served our archdiocese for more than 20 years.”
“His love for Christ and his Church became evident in the generosity and love with which he attended his people,” said the archbishop. “His parishioners, friends and priests will miss him deeply.”
Translated and adapted by the ACI Press team. Originally published in CNA.
Daniel Payne
Daniel Payne is a senior editor of Catholic News Agency. He previously worked at College Fix and Just the News. He lives in Virginia with his family.