Pennsylvania: Man Arrested After Attempting To Shoot Pastor, Body Found In

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Allegheny County police

OAN’s Abril Elfi
11:02 AM – Monday, May 6, 2024

A man was arrested recently after he pulled out a firearm and aimed it at a pastor during the middle of a sermon in Pennsylvania.

Bernard Polite, 26, has now been arrested after trying to shoot pastor Glenn Germany at the Jesus’ Dwelling Place Church in North Braddock on Sunday.

A livestream of the ordeal showed the pastor ducking for cover and running as the perpetrator brandished the weapon.

“Roughly 25 parishioners were listening to Germany’s sermon when the gunman suddenly started walking towards the front pew,” The Post reported.

Bernard Junior Polite, 26, stormed into a church service and tried to shoot a pastor at Jesus’ Dwelling Place Church in Pennsylvania this weekend.

From the video either he had an empty chamber, safety wasn’t deactivated, or had a malfunction but the gun didn’t work and he didn’t… pic.twitter.com/87dUNXUKLy

— Mrgunsngear (@Mrgunsngear) May 6, 2024

“I’m thankful to God that I’m still here because he definitely pulled the trigger,” Germany told WTAE. “I started to begin to preach, and all of a sudden, from my left-hand side, I saw him move from the back to the front of the church, and he set up in the front corner of the church and smiled at me. All of a sudden, I just saw a gun pointing right at me. And at that point, all I could try to do is run for cover.”

Following the incident, Clarence McCallister, the deacon of the church, is seen on camera jumping over Polite and tackling him.

“God had his hands on the pastor,” McCallister stated. “He wasn’t letting him go nowhere.”

Polite was eventually disarmed by McCallister as well as the pastor, who both held him down until the police could arrive.

Pastor Germany, whose 14-year-old daughter was present in the church at the time, claimed that Polite had vocalized that he had seen “spirits” in his head telling him to shoot the pastor. He reportedly said the statement while he was being held down by the two men.

“This guy was just dealing with spirits, he said, and he came in and wanted to shoot somebody,” Germany stated. “He said, ‘You ducked a taco today,’ that’s what he told me, and I guess that’s slang for ‘You ducked a bullet.’”

“He actually apologized to me. I told him, ‘I forgive you and want you to know I love you,’” the pastor continued.

Numerous charges, such as attempted homicide and aggravated assault, are now being brought against Polite.

Additionally, in Polite’s residence, which is less than half a mile from the church, the deceased body of a 56-year-old man was also found by police a few hours after the shooting incident. This discovery prompted an investigation by Allegheny County police.

Although the precise nature of Polite’s relationship with the victim was not immediately clear, local media sources claimed that the gunman had lived with his uncle.

It is unclear at this time if Polite will be represented by his own legal counsel. On May 13^th, he is scheduled to return to court for a preliminary hearing.

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