A morning at a Polish monastery turned into a desperate emergency when a man armed with a knife attacked five people, killing a priest and sending four others to the hospital.
“When I arrived, there was total panic,” Sister Barbara Dendor told Polish broadcaster TVP Info after the September 24 attack at the Benedictine abbey in Jarosław, according to Reuters.
The priest who died was identified as Father Stanisław Zbojnowicz. Among those injured was another priest, Father Marek, whose condition initially prompted urgent appeals for prayer. (currently.att.yahoo.com)
Police received the first report around 9:30 a.m. Thursday and arrested a 31-year-old man at the monastery complex on Benedyktyńska Street.
According to the Jarosław police department’s official statement, four men and a woman had been injured. All five were taken to hospitals, with three men initially described as seriously hurt. Authorities identified the suspect as a Ukrainian citizen. (Portal polskiej Policji)
Prosecutors later clarified that three victims were clergy members and two were laypeople, correcting early reports that all four men were priests.
Prosecutor Bożena Harasz-Wołoszyn said the suspect took a knife from a kitchen on the premises before attacking people, including a priest who was in a confessional. Authorities have not established a motive. (currently.att.yahoo.com)
By Friday, September 25, there was a more hopeful update about the survivors.
Prosecutors said all four were in stable condition and their lives were no longer in danger, according to Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita. That marked an improvement from Thursday, when two victims had been described as critically injured. (rp.pl)
The investigation also moved forward, although the suspect’s medical condition complicated the next steps.
Prosecutors said they had prepared allegations of murder, attempted murder and causing serious bodily injury. As of Friday’s update, those allegations had not yet been formally presented to the suspect because he remained hospitalized.
Medical experts were being asked to determine whether he could participate in questioning. Prosecutors also planned to ask a court to order his detention while the case proceeds. He has not been convicted. (rp.pl)
At the monastery, the focus remained on the victims and the priest who would not return.
Sister Barbara remembered Father Stanisław as a devoted priest who worked in the sacristy, where items used in worship are kept. Speaking to Fakt, she described clergy who generously gave their time to the city, surrounding communities and visitors. (fakt.pl)
Rzeszów Cathedral also called for prayers for Father Marek, Father Stanisław and everyone affected in a public Facebook message. (people.com)
Jarosław’s mayor, Marcin Nazarewicz, announced a period of mourning through the end of the week. As residents grieved, investigators continued working to establish why the attack happened and the sequence of events inside the monastery grounds. (currently.att.yahoo.com)
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