Gary Bullock arrested for murder of California priest Rev Eric Freed
Police say they have a suspect in custody tied to the murder of a California priest who was found dead on New Year’s Day.
Gary Lee Bullock, age 43, was arrested by Humboldt County deputies after he was surrendered to police by family members, stated a Thursday police statement.
“We contacted them, and they told us where he was,” Eureka Police Chief Andrew Mills said. He said he was taken into custody without incident.
“The reverend was a victim of a violent crime,” Mills explained. “We’re not sure on the motive but don’t believe it was a robbery at this point.”
“Bullock was initially arrested on Tuesday for public intoxication in Garberville and taken to jail in Eureka, His erratic behavior led police to send him to a hospital for an evaluation.”
“He became agitated and deputies had to restrain him. He was booked into jail for about eight hours then released shortly after midnight.”
Freed was described as a victim suffering “unmistakable signs of blunt force trauma.”
“[Freed’s] gruesome death — which the county coroner official ruled a homicide on Thursday — has shaken many in and around Eureka, both members of the parish he served, the nearby university where he taught and the community at large.”
“‘Eric knew as well as anybody just how senseless violence could be,’ said Wiliam Herbrechtsmeier, a professor at Humboldt State University where Freed had taught since 2007.
