Last weekend, fists flew inside a church in Lakewood, Washington, after an altercation on the altar escalated into violence.
In a video that has since gone viral, a man can be seen disrupting the mass and approaching the altar before the priest backs off and other churchgoers go to defend him. A few fists fly as churchgoers came together to remove the man from the church.
In a letter obtained by KIRO, the man was recently given a trespass notice earlier this month after he threatened the safety of the church staff and other churchgoers.
“The events leading up to this unfortunate incident began last month,” Father Paul Brunet wrote in a letter addressing the incident. “After an initial pastoral appointment with (name redacted), his behavior has worsened and become less predictable. He has engaged in a course of abusive and threatening conduct, directed not just at me but towards the parish and school staff.”
According to the church, the man would be arrested if he tried to return.
Brunet said that the church will be working with police and a security company to ensure the church’s safety going forward.
