Irving man arrested in priest’s death; Suspect is burglary parolee; hammer is linked to killing

Acting on a tip, Dallas police arrested a paroled burglar Monday in the slaying of an Eastern Orthodox priest and recovered a hammer they believe was used to beat him to death.

The Irving man, 21, was arrested about 4:45 p.m. in the 3000 block of Storey Lane in northwest Dallas about five hours after police found the Rev. Anthony Boake’s car a few blocks away.

Homicide Sgt. Gary Kirkpatrick said detectives were questioning David Burton Nesbitt on Monday evening about Father Boake’s slaying.

Police said Mr. Nesbitt, a day laborer who was to be on parole until 2005 on a residential burglary conviction, was arrested on a capital murder warrant and will be held in lieu of $ 100,000 bail.

Detectives questioned Mr. Nesbitt for more than two hours before escorting him to the Lew Sterrett Justice Center, where he will be charged Tuesday with capital murder, Detective Kevin Navarro said.

Mr. Nesbitt, dressed in black jeans, a western shirt, white gimmee cap and athletic shoes, declined to comment as he was led away. He kept his head down and would not look at journalists.

“At this time we’re considering robbery as the motive,” Sgt. Kirkpatrick said.

Father Boake’s roommate found the priest’s body about 1:30 a.m. Saturday in their home in the 3700 block of Walnut Hill Lane, in northwest Dallas. The priest was pastor of Saints Constantine and Helen Antiochian Eastern Orthodox Church at the same address.

Detectives believe that Father Boake, 50, and the suspect were acquainted, “just strictly friends,” Sgt. Kirkpatrick said.

Officers do not know when they met, he said.

The suspect “had been over to the house before. They were not strangers to one another,” said Capt. Dwight Walker of the identification division.

Detectives await results of tests on a “common claw hammer” to determine whether it was used in the slaying, Sgt. Kirkpatrick said.

“We feel certain it’s the right hammer, but we’ll have to run tests on it,” said Capt. Walker.

He said an informant telephoned police about 7 a.m. Monday after watching a television broadcast about the slaying. The informant said he had heard the suspect admit to the slaying Sunday but said he had initially discounted the claim, the captain said.

Capt. Walker said police found Father Boake’s 1990 Chevrolet Cavalier about noon on Webb Chapel Road. The informant’s information included the vehicle’s location.

Police released few details about the suspect, except that he sometimes lived with his mother in Irving, or with friends, and worked at odd jobs.

In addition to the 15-year burglary sentence he received in 1991, Mr. Nesbitt also has convictions in 1989 and 1990 for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and theft over $ 750, Police Department spokesman Ed Spencer said.

Several church members and relatives said Monday evening that they had never heard of Mr. Nesbitt.

“I know absolutely nothing,” said Father Boake’s sister, Barbara Smith. “This is the first I’ve heard about it. I haven’t heard that name before.”

Edmond Massad, a founding member of the church, said that the name did “not ring a bell with any of us.”

If police have found the killer, he said, “it would be a relief, all right, but they’ve got to prove that it was him.”

The Rev. Nicholas Katinas of Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church said he was pleased that police had made an arrest so quickly.

Father Katinas wondered, however, how such a brutal crime could have happened to a man who did so much to help others. Killing others makes us godless without hope or compassion, he said.

“Somewhere along the line, someone must have let him down,” he said of the suspect.

Though Father Katinas said he feels no aggression or hostility toward the suspect, he finds it difficult to have any compassion for him.

“If he did it, I think he should be in prison for the rest of his life,” Father Katinas said. “I don’t think he should ever be able to cause another that kind of brutal pain.”

Bishop Basil Essey of Los Angeles arrived at the church late Monday afternoon to conduct a funeral for the priest. Another service was scheduled for 10 a.m. Tuesday at Holy Trinity, 13555 Hillcrest Road.

Staff writer Todd J. Gillman contributed to this report.