A man was arrested in Pennsylvania, in the USA, after he tried to shoot a pastor during a church mass, which was being broadcast live. Thus, the dramatic moment was recorded and the authorities later released the argument that the attacker gave: “God told him to do it.”
The chaos at Morada de Jesús Church in North Braddock occurred Sunday during live mass, state police said in a news release. The murder attempt failed because the gun jammed when the attacker tried to shoot. Upon seeing the man, identified as Bernard J. Polite, 26, The pastor tried to take refuge behind a lectern.
Polite is a resident of Braddock and entered the church shortly after 1 p.m. and walked toward Reverend Glenn Germany, who at that moment offered a sermon. The pastor told the channel WTAE-TV in Pittsburgh that the attacker smiled at him and they made eye contact just before the attacker pointed the gun at him.
“God saved me”said the reverend, who leads Jesus Dwelling Place Church in North Braddock, a suburb of Pittsburgh.
When they realized that the weapon had jammed, a parishioner lunged at Polite and subdued him. Germany joined him to try to take the gun from the man who resisted for a few seconds until he was overwhelmed. The attacker was held until the police arrived and took him into custody.
According to authorities, Polite argued that “God told him to do it” and that he planned to shoot Germany and “wait to be arrested” so he can go to prison and clear his head. Now, he faces several charges, including aggravated assault and attempted murder, and this Monday he was being held without bail in the Allegheny County Jail.
But the terror grew even greater when the police went to the house where Polite was shortly before trying to shoot the pastor. Over there They found a man dead with a gunshot wound. The coroner’s office identified him as Derek Polite, 56, of North Braddock, but did not say whether he was related to Bernard Polite, although It is estimated that he is a relative.
Polite was not known at the church, authorities said. He approached the temple after hearing music coming from there, according to court documents. Once police arrived, the pastor reported that Polite appeared to be mentally disturbed and that he apologized, telling her that he heard voices in his head encouraging him to shoot him.
With information from agencies.
