Ukrainian detained in Poland after knife attack: priest dead
In the Polish town of Jarosław, Podkarpackie Voivodeship, a man with a knife attacked people on the grounds of the Benedictine Sisters' monastery. Five people were stabbed, and one of the injured clergy later died in the hospital. Police detained a 31-year-old citizen of Ukraine.
The attack occurred on the morning of September 24 at the Jarosław Abbey on Benedyktyńska Street. Around 9:30 a.m., police received a report of a man with a knife on the grounds of the religious complex. Officers who arrived detained the suspected attacker.
According to preliminary police information, the man wounded four men and one woman. All five were taken to hospitals, with initial reports indicating that three men had sustained serious injuries. It was later revealed that one of the injured clergy died. According to RMF FM, the condition of two other victims was considered very serious.
TVN24 clarifies that the attack occurred during a service. Małgorzata Taciuch-Kurasiewicz, a spokesperson for the District Prosecutor's Office in Przemyśl, reported that among those involved were both religious and lay people attending Mass at the abbey.
According to the prosecution, the victims suffered puncture wounds. Investigators assume that the attacker used a kitchen knife. Prosecutors and experts are working at the monastery complex, collecting physical evidence and interviewing witnesses. The detainee is being held at the police station in Jarosław.
The motive for the attack has not yet been established. Polish law enforcement agencies have not currently stated that the man's actions were related to the nationality of the victims, religion, or other ideological motives.
RMF FM, citing one of the Benedictine sisters, reports that the man was able to enter the complex because the gates had been left open following a visit by a group of young people. According to her, he attacked people there. Children visiting the monastery and the children attending the kindergarten located on its grounds were not harmed.
Following the incident, the mayor of Jarosław convened a city crisis team. Podkarpackie Voivode Teresa Kubas-Hul participated in the meeting. Police and prosecutors continue to establish the exact sequence of events.
After information about a possible second fatality appeared on social media, Polish authorities separately called for not spreading unconfirmed information. As of the second half of the day, one death has been officially confirmed.
Sources: TVN24, Podkarpackie Voivodeship Police, RMF FM
