SENECA, Kan. (KSNT) - An Oklahoma man is now in custody after a Kansas priest was fatally shot Thursday afternoon.
According to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, a 911 caller reported shots being fired at the Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church rectory at 411 Pioneer St., in Seneca, at 2:50 p
.m. Both the Nemaha County Sheriff’s Office and the Seneca Police Department responded to the scene.
After law enforcement arrived on the scene, they discovered Father Arul Carasala, 57, of Seneca, outside the residence suffering from gunshot wounds. He was taken to a local hospital, where he died from his injuries.
Shortly after, law enforcement took a 66-year-old man from Tulsa, Oklahoma, into custody. He was booked into the Nemaha County Jail on suspicion of first-degree murder.
According to Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann of the Archdiocese of Kansas City, the community is not under ongoing threat.
KSNT News contacted the Nemaha County Sheriff's Office, but they declined to comment.
Man charged with stealing from Kansas Catholic school
Carasala had served the Archdiocese for over 20 years, including as dean of the Nemaha-Marshall region.
"Fr. Carasala was a devoted and zealous pastor who faithfully served our Archdiocese for over twenty years, including as dean of the Nemaha-Marshall region. His love for Christ and His Church was evident in how he ministered to his people with great generosity and care. His parishioners, friends, and brother priests will deeply miss him," Naumann said on Facebook.
The Knights of Columbus in Seneca will lead a Rosary at Saints Peter and Paul Parish in Seneca starting at 6 p.m., and Naumann will celebrate a Mass there at 7:30 p.m. The public is invited to join them in prayer.
"His love for Christ and His Church was evident in how he ministered to his people with great generosity and care," Naumann wrote. "His parishioners, friends, and brother priests will deeply miss him."
KSN does not name individuals believed to be connected to a crime unless formal charges have been filed.
...read more read less
