The murder of a Kansas Catholic priest at his church’s rectory was carried out “intentionally and with premeditation,” a prosecutor said. 

Gary Hermesch, aged 66 from Tulsa, Oklahoma, is currently detained at the Nemaha County Jail after the shooting death of Father Arul Carasala the previous week. The 57-year-old victim was discovered “with gunshot injuries” on Thursday after police answered a 911 call at Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Seneca. He subsequently passed away at a nearby hospital, as reported by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI). 

A legal filing stated that Hermesch, who is charged with first-degree murder and remains jailed on a $1 million bond, “deliberately and with forethought” took Carasala’s life, according to Nemaha County Attorney Brad Lippert, as reported by The Associated Press. 

Lipper did not immediately respond Monday to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.

Gary Hermesch was taken into custody in connection to the shooting of Father Arul Carasala. (Nemaha County Sheriff’s Office)

Schieber described the shooting as a “senseless act of violence.” 

“We are clueless about the motive behind this act. Plus, we’re sincerely praying for the individual who ended Father Arul’s life. And thank you to everyone for your prayers,” he mentioned. 

Deputies from the Nemaha County Sheriff’s Office and officers from the Seneca Police Department responded to a 911 call “reporting shots fired at the Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church rectory” around 3 p.m. local time Thursday, the KBI said.  

When they arrived, they discovered Carasala “outside the residence suffering from gunshot wounds,” it added. 

Archbishop Joseph Naumann leads a mass on Thursday, April 3, at the Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Seneca following the death of Father Arul Carasala. (Jay Soldner/The Leaven)

“Seneca EMS arrived and transported Father Carasala to the Nemaha Valley Community Hospital. Despite life-saving measures, he died at the hospital from his injuries,” the KBI also said in a statement.