Prosecutors on Saturday charged the priest, only identified as Mirosław M. in line with Polish privacy rules, with murder with particular cruelty.
The victim, a 68-year-old homeless man, was found dead in the village of Lasopole in the central Mazowieckie province.
According to a district prosecutor’s office, the crime was committed by a 60-year-old parish priest from a local village.
Prosecutors allege that the priest and the victim had previously signed a donation agreement transferring a property to the clergyman who had agreed to provide lifelong assistance and care for the homeless man.
However, while driving through rural roads, the pair got into a heated argument during which the priest allegedly struck the man with an axe and then doused him in flammable liquid and set him ablaze while he was still alive.
Police were alerted when a cyclist discovered the burning body. Investigators quickly identified the suspect through license plate numbers, leading them to the parish rectory.
Mirosław M. then confessed to the crime, according to Poland's PAP news agency.
On Saturday, Warsaw Archbishop Adrian Galbas requested the Holy See to dismiss the perpetrator from the priesthood, the highest penalty in canon law for a cleric.
In a statement to the archdiocese on Friday, Galbas asked for Catholics to pray for the victim and his loved ones.
The archbishop said he was devastated by the crime and pledged to cooperate with investigators.
(mo)
Source: PAP, AP