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The man accused of trying to kill a pastor during a Pennsylvania sermon Sunday has been charged with the unrelated murder of his cousin, who police say was killed with the same gun that failed to discharge during a thwarted attack on a Pittsburgh-area church.
Bernard Junior Polite, 26, allegedly walked into the Jesus’ Dwelling Place Church in North Braddock, sat near the front and eventually approached the pastor with a drawn handgun.
Deacon Clarence McCallister was looking through a camera’s viewfinder as he livestreamed the service. The recording shows a man walk up to the front of the church, aim a gun at the Rev. Glenn Germany and pull the trigger.
According to court documents obtained by Fox News Digital, Polite told police he heard the church music and was drawn inside, where he allegedly intended to kill the pastor so he could clear his mind in jail.
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Bernard Polite pictured in a booking photo provided by the Allegheny County Police Department. The 26-year-old is accused of killing his cousin, Derek Polite, and barging in on a Sunday church service where he allegedly attempted to kill the pastor before his gun failed to discharge. (Allegheny County Police Department)
Witnesses heard a click, but the gun misfired. McCallister jumped over a railing and tackled the suspect.
PENNSYLVANIA MAN AIMS GUN AT PASTOR IN CHURCH, INTERRUPTS SERMON ON VIDEO
He and the pastor wrestled the gun away and held the suspect in place until police arrived. Germany said the suspect told him he was hearing voices from spirits that encouraged him to murder.
WATCH: PENNSYLVANIA MAN AIMS GUN AT PASTOR DURING SERMON:
Video“I heard it click, and I thought, ‘Oh, my God, thank God that gun jammed,’” McCallister told Fox News Digital.
According to investigators, the firing pin struck the primer, but the weapon failed to discharge.
Polite allegedly claimed he had been possessed by spirits, and he sat smiling as he was being restrained.
“Mental illness is serious,” McCallister said. “This is something that needs to be taken seriously, and we need to do our best to recognize it.”
READ THE CRIMINAL COMPLAINT – APP USERS, CLICK HERE:
Both McCallister and Germany told Fox News Digital they had never seen the suspect before Sunday. Public records show he has ties to New Jersey.
“I’ve never seen him before in the church, and I’ve never seen him before in public,” McCallister said.
Hours after the church incident, Polite’s relatives called Allegheny County Police to a nearby home where Polite lived with his cousin, Derek Polite.
Pennsylvania church hero Clarence McCallister pictured after removing a handgun from a man who entered his local church and aimed the weapon at Pastor Glenn Germany during a sermon on Sunday May 5, 2024. (Glenn Germany / LOCAL NEWS X /TMX)
Paramedics found Derek Polite dead at the scene. He had a gunshot wound to the head consistent with the .380-caliber handgun police recovered at the church, according to court documents obtained by Fox News Digital.
A neighbor told police he saw Bernard Polite pacing back on the front porch shortly before another witness overheard a gunshot around 10 a.m. Sunday. The church incident happened around 1 p.m.
Pastor Glenn Germany, of the Jesus’ Dwelling Place Church in North Braddock, Pennsylvania, delivering a sermon on Sunday May 5, 2024. Moments later, an armed man approached the pulpit, but his gun didn’t go off. (Glenn Germany / LOCAL NEWS X /TMX)
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Polite now faces murder charges in addition to attempted homicide, aggravated assault and reckless endangerment.
He is being held without bail at the Allegheny County Jail. Authorities said he was expected to be arraigned on the murder charge at some point Wednesday.
