A 60 year old retired Scandinavian faces a fine of 601 euros for disrupting a mass held in the Parish Church of Santiago the Apostle in Santiago de la Ribera.
He didn’t blaspheme or even insult the parish priest or anyone in the congregation. He was simply drunk and constantly interrupting the Sunday Mass with his very loud outbursts.
The parishioner is named as Mikael OB, a retired Scandinavian, about 60 years of age, who often attends mass at the church in Santiago de la Ribera. The incident is said to have occurred earlier in the year on 2nd April.
He interrupted the mass so often that the Policia Local were called from San Javier to attend the incident. He was escorted from the church and charged with “an infraction consisting of disturbing public safety at a public event.”
The parish priest, Father Juan Pedro Fernández, said that he regrets what happened. He said that when the parishioner is sober he is an excellent person, but when he drinks he often resorts to shouting.”
It is understood that Mikael, a former member of Swedish Special Forces, still attends mass at the church on most Sundays.
Police sources say that he has not contested the fine so they expect him to pay in full and accept his penance.
