Pastor Pulls Gun on Repo Man, Police Say

A local pastor was arrested Sunday in Bala Cynwyd after, Lower Merion police said, he pulled a gun on a repo man to stop him from taking his Lexus.

Terence Priester, 48, of Claymont, DE, faces felony charges of aggravated assault and possession of an unlicensed firearm, in addition to multiple misdemeanors stemming from the incident.

At 12:45 p.m. Sunday, police responded to Saint John's Episcopal Church, located at 404 E. Levering Mill Road in Bala Cynwyd, for a report of a man with a gun. 

Once officers were on the scene, police said, they were met by the victim, a repo man. The man told police that he was at the church to repossess a Lexus that belonged to Priester and, in accordance with company policy, had called the owner to tell him the car was being taken.

Police said that as the repo man was positioning the tow truck, Priester walked out of the church with a handgun and pointed it at the victim. The repo man told police that the pastor "challenged him" with the handgun, then got into his Lexus and drove away.

After they arrived, police called Priester, and he returned to the scene. Police said he was unarmed at this time and was driven by a third party in a separate vehicle. He was arrested and charged.

Lower Merion police initially identified Priester as a pastor at Saint John's, but according to his church's he is actually a pastor at Light of the World Ministries International—an independent church that holds worship services at Saint John's. A call to Saint John's staff was not immediately returned.