WARSAW, Poland (AP) — The archbishop of Warsaw, Poland, has requested the Vatican to defrock a priest charged with the killing of a 68-year-old homeless man who was crushed with an ax and set on hearth.
Prosecutors on Saturday charged the priest, solely recognized as Mirosław M. according to Polish privateness guidelines, with homicide with explicit cruelty. He’s being detained forward of a trial and faces 15 years to life behind bars.
Investigators say the priest and the sufferer, Anatol Cz., had been collectively in a automotive late Thursday when an argument broke out, in response to Aneta Góźdź, a spokesperson for the Radom District Prosecutor’s Workplace.
The struggle stemmed from a donation settlement the place the priest had agreed to supply lifelong help and look after the person, Góźdź mentioned in an announcement. The argument escalated over the homeless man’s future housing.
The priest allegedly struck the sufferer on the pinnacle with an ax, doused him in flammable liquid and set him on hearth, the spokesperson mentioned. The priest then drove away when he noticed a bicycle mild approaching.
The bicyclist discovered the sufferer engulfed in flames and referred to as for first responders, Góźdź mentioned.
“An post-mortem confirmed that the sufferer suffered burns overlaying 80% of his physique and head accidents attributable to a sharp-edged heavy object,” Góźdź mentioned.
Warsaw Archbishop Adrian Galbas on Saturday requested the Holy See to dismiss the priest from the priesthood, the best penalty in canon legislation for a cleric.
In an announcement to the archdiocese on Friday, Galbas requested for Catholics to wish for the sufferer and his family members. The archbishop mentioned he was “devastated” by the crime and pledged to cooperate with investigators.
The Vatican didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
