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An arrest has been made in connection to the death of Los Angeles Auxiliary Bishop David O’Connell, who was found dead in his Hacienda Heights home on Saturday.
The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department announced Monday morning an arrest was made and the Los Angeles Times reported a man in the city of Torrance was arrested, citing a law enforcement source.
Authorities told USA TODAY that Sheriff Robert Luna will hold a press conference to announce the details of the suspect and arrest at 3 p.m. PST.
The suspect is linked to a woman with access to the bishop’s home in Hacienda Heights, about 25 miles northeast of Torrance, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The arrest comes less than 24 hours after authorities said the death of the high-ranking Catholic Church was being investigated as a homicide.
What we know about O’Connell’s shooting death
Homicide detectives arrived at the home in Hacienda Heights, about 15 miles east of downtown Los Angeles, Saturday afternoon to respond to a “shooting death investigation”. Officers found O’Connell with a gunshot wound and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
O’Connell, who was from Ireland, was ordained as a priest for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in 1979, the Vatican News reported. Pope Francis appointed him Auxiliary Bishop of Los Angeles in June 2015.
Los Angeles Archbishop José H. Gomez said in a statement Sunday he was “deeply disturbed and saddened” to learn O’Connell’s death was being investigated as a homicide and asked for prayers for his family.
“He was a peacemaker with a heart for the poor and the immigrant, and he had a passion for building a community where the sanctity and dignity of every human life was honored and protected,” Gomez said in a statement Saturday. “He was also a good friend, and I will miss him greatly.”
Masses at churches across the region were dedicated to O’Connell on Sunday. Neighbors and parishioners left flowers and candles and recited rosary prayers next to police tape in Hacienda Heights. About 50 people prayed and sang in a vigil Sunday afternoon near part of the neighborhood surrounded by crime scene tape.
Contributing: Associated Press
Follow Jordan Mendoza on Twitter: @jordan_mendoza5.
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