Pastor Charged With Killing Disabled Man

Police say preacher paid hitman with $50K in church funds
By Wesley Oliver,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 25, 2009 4:30 PM CDT
Pastor Charged With Killing Disabled Man
A Baltimore pastor who worked with developmentally disabled people was charged with trying to kill a blind and mentally challenged man.   (Shutter Stock)

Baltimore police say a pastor has admitted to killing a mentally disabled and blind man to collect on his life insurance money, the Baltimore Sun reports. Charged yesterday, Kevin Pushia, 32, confessed to hiring a hit man with $50,000 in church funds to kill Lemuel Wallace—one of several mentally challenged people who have listed Pushia as an insurance beneficiary.

Police found Wallace dead in a park bathroom. Following a tip, they searched Pushia's townhouse and saw a note on a calendar: “L.W. project completed.” They also uncovered six insurance policies in Wallace's name worth $1 million. Police are seeking other possible victims in Pushia's alleged scheme. “We’re all kind of in shock,” said a former co-worker. (More Baltimore stories.)

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