A man accused of murdering a priest outside Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Seneca, Kansas, is reportedly a Trump supporter who wrote letters praising the president.

Gary Hermesch, a 66-year-old man from Oklahoma, has been charged with first-degree murder for the shooting death of Father Arul Carasala, 57. 

The priest was found outside the church with gunshot wounds late last month and later died in the hospital.

It has since emerged that Hermesch reportedly wrote several letters to the Courier-Tribune, a local newspaper in Seneca, in praise of the president.

In some of the letters, he expressed a desire to “make the church great again" and criticised Joe Biden and the state of Catholicism.

“Let's not sweat the small stuff, though, maybe if we just follow Donald Trump’s example we’ll ‘make the Church great again,’” he wrote. “So why are things headed south like a runaway freight train? Simple. The faith is not being taught. Now is that equality and tolerance of other religions, or what?”

On the day former President Joe Biden was inaugurated, Hermesch reportedly wrote: “So, now in this world of this strange new version of ‘Catholicism, ’ we get a capitulating weak puppy like Joe Biden.”

Hermesch’s motive remains unclear, and he is being held at Nemaha County Jail on a $1 million bond. 

Following the news of Father Arul's death, Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann, who leads the Archdiocese of Kansas City, Kansas, expressed grief over the loss, calling the shooting a “senseless act of violence.” He added: “There is no ongoing threat to the community, but I recognize the pain and shock that such an event brings.”