The accused killer of a Kansas Catholic priest shot the clergyman last week “intentionally” and with “premeditation,” a prosecutor has said. 

Gary Hermesch was taken into custody last week at the Nemaha County Jail and charged with first-degree murder in the shooting of Father Arul Carasala, the Nemaha County Sheriff’s Office said. 

Father Carasala was shot at Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Seneca on April 3. The priest later died from his injuries at Nemaha Valley Community Hospital.

Nemaha County Attorney Brad Lippert’s office said in a press release that the murder was planned beforehand. Hermesch is being held on a $1 million bond at the county jail. 

The exact motive of the shooting remains unclear, though local news outlet KSNT reported that Hermesch had previously written letters to the local paper that contained both political and religious remarks. 

“[M]aybe if we just follow Donald Trump’s example we’ll ‘make the Church great again,’” Hermesch reportedly wrote in one of the letters in which he also alleged that “the faith” is “not being taught.”

In other letters he reportedly referenced a “fake Catholic Church” and spoke negatively of the Second Vatican Council. 

The priest had served in the archdiocese for more than 20 years. Kansas City Archbishop Joseph Naumann said after the shooting last week that Father Carasala “was a devoted and zealous pastor” who “faithfully served” the archdiocese. 

“His love for Christ and his Church was evident in how he ministered to his people with great generosity and care,” the archbishop said. “His parishioners, friends, and brother priests will deeply miss him.”