PALM HARBOR, Fla. (WFLA) — A 37-year-old St. Petersburg priest was arrested Monday after police said he slapped a child across the face outside his home.

An arrest report says Dragan Zaric’s son and another child were playing basketball outside Zaric’s home in Palm Harbor when the children got into a fight over a basketball.

The report says Zaric separated his son from the other child, who the report does not identify, and slapped the child in the face. The slap was witnessed by multiple children and several adults, the report says.

Zaric was arrested at 9:52 p.m. and booked on a $5,000 bond.

According to the church’s clergy information, Zaric has been a priest at St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Church in St. Petersburg since 2017.

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