CLEVELAND (AP) -- A Roman Catholic priest found dead in his church's rectory following a fire had been shot to death, authorities said Sunday.
The Rev. William Gulas, 69, pastor of St. Stanislaus Church, died of a single gunshot wound to the chest Saturday, the county coroner said. His death has been ruled a homicide.
Police said they are still investigating a motive.
``Father Gulas was very well liked in the community and he had a number of friends, so this is really a mystery,'' said Celeste Glasgow, spokeswoman for Mayor Jane Campbell.
A preliminary investigation shows Gulas had been shot and suffered a blow to the top of his head before the fire was set, said Dr. Elizabeth Balraj, the Cuyahoga County coroner.
Fire officials said the cause of the fire had not been determined; the arson unit was investigating. Two others inside the rectory had escaped.
Gulas came to St. Stanislaus in 1993 and led a campaign to renovate the 129-year-old church in the city's Slavic Village neighborhood.
Fire officials said Gulas was found in a first-floor office in the rectory; his body was burned beyond recognition.
Gulas was ordained as a Franciscan priest in 1961. He was previously pastor of St. Thomas Aquinas parish in Saginaw, Mich.
``I know what a tremendous personal loss this is for this parish,'' Bishop Anthony Pilla said during a Saturday night Mass for Gulas at St. Stanislaus. ``We're just going to miss a good, holy priest in our midst.''
