The body of a man suspected of pointing a gun at a pastor during a North Braddock church service was found dead in his home Sunday. A North Braddock church service was interrupted when a man jumped in front of the pastor with a gun. Viewer discretion advised: Watch the incident unfold in the video player above. This happened at the Dwelling Church of Jesus on Roblinger’s Avenue. The church was live-streaming the service and captured the moment the man pulled out a gun and pointed it directly at Pastor Glenn German, causing the gun to interrupt. “I thank God I’m still here because He definitely pulled the trigger,” Germany said. German told Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 that he had never seen the shooter before Sunday. He said he noticed the gunman frequently coming in and out of the church and making eye contact with the pastor. Then something unexpected happened. “As I began to preach, I suddenly saw him from my left side moving from the back of the church to the front, and he took up his position in the front corner of the church and smiled at me. “…all of a sudden I saw a gun pointed at me and all I could do at that point was run and take cover,” Germany said. While Germany went into hiding, church members quickly sprang into action. One man even jumped and tackled the gunman. The man was eventually able to wrest the gun from the man’s hands. “You could have lost your life in that fight,” Germany said of the man who jumped. “But he sacrificed himself for everyone and he is a hero,” he said in court. The suspect was identified in documents as Bernard Polite, 26, of Braddock. According to a criminal complaint, Polite confessed to police that he tried to shoot the German because “God told him to do it” and that he wanted to go to prison to clear his name. He stated that he did so. Polite’s body was discovered Sunday evening at his home in the 500 block of Stokes Avenue. Police said a man was found shot to death inside. Early Monday morning, the Allegheny County Coroner’s Office identified a man found shot to death. Neighbors told Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 that the two are related. “Nothing bad happened in that house. No domestic violence, no fights, no arguments that we’ve ever heard of that we know of,” neighbor Guy Diperna said. Neighboring residents were shocked to hear about the development. They said Bernard and Derek were nice and nothing was too much trouble. “I just hope it’s not Bernard, that’s all. He was a good guy and so was Derek,” neighbor Benjamin Jordan said. So far, no charges have been filed in connection with the body found, and Allegheny County Police are conducting the investigation. Meanwhile, Bernard Polite was indicted early Monday morning on charges related to the incident at the church, including attempted murder. He is being held in the Allegheny County Jail and has a preliminary hearing scheduled for later this month.
The body of a man suspected of firing a gun at a pastor during a North Braddock church service was found Sunday at his home.
A North Braddock church service was interrupted when a man jumped in front of the pastor with a gun, intending to shoot him.
Viewer discretion advised: Watch the incident unfold in the video player above.
The incident took place at the Church of the Dwelling of Jesus on Roblinger Street. The church was live-streaming the service and captured the moment the man pulled out a gun and pointed it directly at Pastor Glenn German, causing the gun to interrupt.
“I thank God I’m still here because God definitely pulled the trigger,” Germany said.
German told Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 that he had never seen the gunman before Sunday. He said he noticed the gunman frequenting the church and making eye contact with the pastor. Then something unexpected happened.
“As I began to preach, I suddenly saw him from my left side moving from the back of the church to the front, and he took up his position in the front corner of the church and smiled at me. “…all of a sudden I saw a gun pointed at me and all I could do at that point was run and take cover,” Germany said.
While the Germans went into hiding, church members quickly sprang into action. One man even jumped and tackled the gunman. Eventually, he was able to remove the gun from the man’s hand.
“He could have lost his life in that fight,” the German government said of the man who jumped in. “But he sacrificed himself for everyone. He is a hero.”
Court documents identify the suspect as Bernard Polite, 26, of Braddock.
According to the criminal complaint, Polite told police that he wanted to shoot the German because “God told him to do it” and that he wanted to go to prison to clear his mind.
Polite’s body was discovered Sunday evening at his home in the 500 block of Stokes Avenue.
Police said a man was found shot to death inside the room.
Early Monday morning, the Allegheny County Coroner’s Office identified the man found shot to death in the home as Derek Polite, 56, of North Braddock.
Neighbors told Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 that the two are related.
“Nothing bad happened in that house. No domestic violence, no fights, no arguments that we’ve ever heard of that we know of,” neighbor Guy Diperna said.
Neighboring residents were shocked to hear about the development. They said Bernard and Derek were nice and nothing was too much trouble.
“I just hope it’s not Bernard, that’s all. He was a good guy and so was Derek,” neighbor Benjamin Jordan said.
So far, no charges have been filed in connection with the body found, and Allegheny County Police are conducting the investigation. That incident.
Meanwhile, Bernard Polite was charged early Monday morning with attempted murder and other charges related to the incident at the church.
He is being held in the Allegheny County Jail, with a preliminary hearing scheduled for later this month.
