Man arrested after Los Angeles Catholic bishop found murdered

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Man arrested after Los Angeles Catholic bishop found murdered

Police have arrested a suspect in the murder of a beloved bishop in Los Angeles (Image: AP/NBC)

A man has been arrested in connection with the shocking slaying of a Los Angeles bishop on Saturday.

Los Angeles Auxiliary Bishop David McConnell was was found dead at his Hacienda Heights home Saturday afternoon. Killed from a single gunshot wound.

Just a day after his death was announced, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) confirmed that it was being investigated as a homicide.

A suspect was arrested by LASD deputies Monday morning in Torrance, a city in south Los Angeles County. Officers and a SWAT team vehicle were seen outside the suspect’s suburban home.

A medical examiner leaves the home of Bishop David O'Connell in Hacienda Heights, Calif., Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. O'Connell was shot and killed Saturday, a few blocks from a church, a killing of a longtime priest hailed as ?? ?peacemaker??? That has surprised the Los Angeles religious community, authorities said. Detectives are investigating the death as a homicide, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Sheriff’s deputies investigate a crime scene in Hacienda Heights, California (Image: AP)

The Sheriff’s Department has not yet released many details about the investigation or the arrest. Sources familiar with the investigation told the The Los Angeles Times reported that the suspect was linked to a woman who had access to the bishop’s home.

Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna is expected to provide more details about the suspect at a press conference scheduled for 3 p.m. local time.

O’Connell was born in County Cork, Ireland and served as a priest in Los Angeles for his entire 45-year career. He was named Auxiliary Bishop in 2015 by Pope Francis.

FILE - Bishop David O'Connell, of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, attends a press conference at the Fall General Assembly meeting of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Nov. 17, 2021, in Baltimore. O'Connell was found dead in Hacienda Heights, California on Saturday, February 18, 2023, of a gunshot wound, according to the Los Angeles Times. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)

Bishop David O’Connell was found dead from a single gunshot wound on Saturday (Image: AP)

“He was a peacemaker with a heart for the poor and immigrants and had a passion for building a community where the sanctity and dignity of every human life is honored and protected,” Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez said after his death.

After his death, parishioners flocked to his house to pray the rosary and mourn the beloved community leader.

Los Angeles leaders, including Mayor Eric Garcetti and Sheriff Luna, also offered condolences for the fallen bishop.

Mayor Garcetti called O’Connell a “friend of many years” and was part of a prayer group with him during the COVID-19 pandemic. “This city has lost one of its most beautiful angels,” he said.

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