A Sunday morning church service in Pennsylvania was abruptly halted when authorities say a man pulled a gun on the pastor and allegedly attempted to shoot him in front of worshippers.
Police have also since found a body inside the suspect’s home, ABC News reports.
The incident happened at Jesus’ Dwelling Place Church in North Braddock, Pennsylvania, shortly after 1:00 p.m., according to the Pennsylvania State Police.
The victim was delivering his sermon when the assassination attempt was made.
The ABC report sets out the suspected gunman, who police identified as 26-year-old Bernard Junior Polite, entered the church and allegedly attempted to shoot the pastor, Glenn Germany, as he was livestreaming the morning of worship, according to police.
The suspect’s firearm failed to discharge and a congregation member and the pastor were able to tackle, subdue and disarm him before anyone was harmed, police said.
Man Allegedly Attempts to Shoot Pastor During Sermon, Gets Tackled
“I’m thankful to God that I’m still here because he definitely pulled the trigger,” Germany told ABC News affiliate WTAE.
Describing the alarming encounter, Germany told the outlet Polite smiled at him before the attempted attack.
“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,” Germany said.
“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,” he said.
Polite was arraigned Monday morning for attempted homicide. No one has been charged yet for the deadly shooting.