A Pennsylvania man who tried to shoot a pastor during a sermon that was being livestreamed earlier this week has been additionally charged with homicide, accused of fatally shooting his cousin the same day.
Bernard Junior Polite, 26, of Braddock, was arrested Sunday afternoon after he pointed a gun at Pastor Glenn Germany at Jesus Dwelling Place Church in the 400 block of Lobinger Avenue in Allegheny County, about 10 miles east of downtown Pittsburgh, just after 1 p.m.
The terrifying confrontation was captured on the church's livestream, but the gun appeared to have jammed and “failed to discharge,” Pennsylvania State Police said.
Polite was pinned down and disarmed by the church’s deacon and the pastor until police arrived and arrested him.
After family members saw reports of that church incident, they went to his residence in the 500 block of Stokes Avenue where he lived with his cousin Derek Polite, 56, “to check on his well-being” and found the elder Polite deceased.
The Allegheny County Police Department was called at 8:15 p.m. to the home. Derek Polite had been shot once, Police Superintendent Christopher Kearns said in a news conference Tuesday.
Police believe Polite shot his cousin, then went to the church with that same gun.
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Authorities learned through witness interviews that Polite was seen pacing outside the residence Sunday morning and a neighbor later reported hearing “a noise which could have been a gunshot at approximately 10 a.m.,” police said in a release.
In the church attempted shooting, a firearm was recovered by Pennsylvania State Police — that matched the projectile recovered from Derek Polite.
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Polite has been further charged with one count of criminal homicide, police said Tuesday.
It’s not clear what motivated the shooting of Derek Polite or the attempted church shooting, Kearns said.
He said that there was no indication of an altercation in the home they shared, and it appeared that the victim was shot as he was walking up the steps from the first floor to the second floor.
He also noted that Polite did not appear to have a relationship with Jesus Dwelling Place Church, and it’s not clear why the gun jammed when he pointed it at the pastor.
He said he believed that Polite was the owner of the firearm recovered from the scene at the church.
Polite is currently being held in Allegheny County Jail pending preliminary arraignment. It's not immediately clear if he has retained a lawyer.
A relative of Polite and Derek Polite, who did not wish to be identified by name, told NBC News on Monday that the shooting has left their family “in total shock.”
The relative said that Polite had moved in with Derek Polite several years ago and has a history of mental illness but that there have been no alarming incidents since he has been in the Pittsburgh area. Allegheny County police also told NBC News on Monday that no one has reported concerns about Polite in recent weeks to the police department.
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