A 50-year-old Winnipeg man has been charged with assault with a weapon, possession of a weapon and disturbing an assemblage of persons after disrupting a Feb. 9 evening Mass at Holy Ghost Parish.

According to Winnipeg Police Service (WPS) testimony — corroborated by video of the incident that has been shared online — the suspect, Pawel Olownia, approached and attempted to stab the parish’s 38-year-old pastor with a knife near the altar. The priest made a screaming sound as he retreated from the attack.

“As the suspect approached the pastor, luckily he was able to see this, whether he saw he had a knife or his sixth sense kicked in, and he was able to avoid getting assaulted by the suspect,” said Constable Stephen Spencer, public information officer with the WPS, to local media outlets.

Immediately after the priest escaped unharmed, a WPS news release stated, and video showed , “the suspect drove the knife into the altar before sitting in a chair at the back of the altar.”

An off-duty RCMP member worked with other members of the congregation to detain Olownia until the police arrived to take him into custody.

Investigators have not found a previous link between attacker and his intended victim nor a motive for the incident. Reportedly, the priest said he had never encountered the man before.

“I’ve been on 23 years, and this is the first I’ve seen of this type of incident in a church, so it’s quite different, for sure, and quite alarming,” said Spencer.

The Archdiocese of Winnipeg shared a statement with The Catholic Register that it disseminated to local media on Feb. 10. It stated: “The Archdiocese of Winnipeg is aware of the attempted stabbing incident during the 6 p.m. Mass yesterday at Holy Ghost Parish in Winnipeg. The man has been taken into custody, and we await a judge’s ruling. We are grateful that no one was hurt.”

Olownia remains in custody pending court proceedings.