A shocking video shows a 50-year-old man with a knife attacking a priest on the stage of a Polish Catholic church in Winnipeg, Canada, on Sunday.
In a Monday press release, the Winnipeg Police Service said police responded to a report of “an armed male disrupting a church service” at roughly 6:00 p.m. on Sunday. Police officials said a 50-year-old male suspect, who was armed with a knife, approached the church’s 38-year-old pastor and “attempted to assault the victim, who managed to escape unharmed.”
“The suspect drove the knife into the altar before sitting in a chair at the back of the altar,” the Winnipeg Police Service added. “No injuries were reported during the incident.”
A video from the church’s livestream, which was shared on X, formerly Twitter, shows the suspect charging toward the priest inside the Holy Ghost Church and attempting to attack him as the priest quickly runs off the stage. The suspect can then be seen stabbing the knife into the church altar.
According to police officials, an off-duty Royal Canadian Mounted Police member and other members of the church were able to detain the suspect, who has been identified as 50-year-old Pawel Olownia, until law enforcement officials arrived and arrested the suspect.
The Winnipeg Police Service confirmed that Olownia currently faces multiple charges, including assault with a weapon, disturbing a meeting, and the possession of a weapon.
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According to City News, the pastor told the Winnipeg Police Service that the suspect involved in the assault incident was not a regular attendee of the Holy Ghost Parish.
“The pastor was able to see what was happening, whether he saw the knife in his hand or just had a sense that something wasn’t right, was able to get off the … alter fast enough,” Stephen Spencer, a Winnipeg police spokesperson, said.
“If he was really motivated, it could have been a lot worse,” Spencer added. “The fact that he made the attempt to assault the pastor then got rid of the knife and just sat down, was the best case of a worst case scenario that somebody would face. It could have been a lot worse. Luckily, nobody got hurt.”
The Winnipeg police spokesperson told City News that the incident does not appear to be a “targeted attack” but was a “very rare” and “quite random” incident.
“It’s a very rare incident and I think everybody involved is quite shaken up as a result,” Spencer said. “Nobody expects that when they go to church on Sunday or any day of the week, that somebody’s going to be there with a weapon and try and attack somebody in the church.”
