NATIONAL BRIEFING

Authorities in a town where a preacher was brutally slain in her own church warned pastors that they should take precautions, even as police refused to say exactly what happened.

District Atty. Bret Burns, who described the killing as “horrific,” held a closed-door session with about two dozen pastors, along with members of law enforcement. Several pastors who were there said that authorities did not discuss any facts of the case.

“We talked about security issues within their churches and their congregations,” Burns said. “We asked them to remain vigilant and be aware of their surroundings and their church locations.”

The body of the Rev. Carol Daniels, 61, was found Sunday in the Christ Holy Sanctified Church in Anadarko, about 50 miles southwest of Oklahoma City. A preliminary autopsy found that she died of “multiple sharp force injuries.”

Burns did not rule out the possibility that the killer or killers specifically targeted a pastor or a church. “There are a lot of things we’re not prepared to rule out,” he said. “I’m concerned about the nature of this crime. I’m concerned about the community.”