Police have arrested two men who allegedly robbed a Brooklyn pastor at gunpoint in July and are searching for a third suspect, the NYPD and law enforcement officials said Wednesday.
The alleged burglary took place July 24 in the middle of church service, officials said. According to authorities, three individuals approached the stage, displayed a firearm, and demanded the pastor’s property and jewelry.
Both the pastor and his wife were robbed of jewelry, authorities said. Approximately $1 million worth in jewelry was stolen, according to NYPD Chief of Detectives James Essig.
Officials said two men were arrested Wednesday in connection to the robbery - Juwan Anderson and Say-Quan Pollack, who are both 24 years old. Both of the men live in Brooklyn and have prior arrests including for domestic violence and robbery, according to officials.
Officials are still searching for a third individual involved, the NYPD said.
The robbery was likely part of a larger pattern of similar robberies, according to Essig.
“There’s a pattern throughout the city—throughout the last few years—[of] high-end jewelry robberies being targeted,” Essig said.
Essig also pointed to the fact that the Brooklyn bishop, Lamor Whitehead, livestreams his sermons as a potential reason why he was targeted.
The stolen jewelry has not been recovered, Essig said.
The two men have been charged with robbery in the first degree and a 10-year minimum sentence is being sought, officials said.
“[It was] a very, very violent robbery crew that we saw with no regard to anybody in the middle of mass, holding his child at gunpoint—that’s a pretty rough robbery,” said Inspector Nicholas Fiore of the NYPD's Central Robbery Division.