US Catholic priest dies after attack in Nebraska church

Image source, Archdiocese of Omaha

Image caption, The Reverend Stephen Gutgsell

A Catholic priest has died after being attacked in a church rectory in the US state of Nebraska.

Police said they found the Reverend Stephen Gutgsell and his alleged attacker in the church after answering a 911 call early Sunday morning in the small Fort Calhoun community.

The 65-year-old priest succumbed to his injuries at a hospital in Omaha following the assault.

The suspect was taken into custody at the church, police said.

They later named him as Kierre Williams, 43, of Sioux City, Iowa.

He was arrested on suspicion on homicide and use of a weapon to commit a felony, they added.

Father Gutgsell made headlines in 2007 after pleading guilty to stealing $127,000 from another parish.

He was sentenced to probation, ordered to pay back the money and later reassigned to a different church.

Church officials said at the time Father Gutgsell had learned his lesson. And Washington County Sheriff Mike Robinson, who is investigating the attack, said police did not believe his death was related to the case.

The priest's brother and fellow priest the Reverend Michael Gutgsell has also fallen foul of the law, pleading guilty to six-figure theft charges last year.