In a chilling jailhouse interview, the man accused of a gruesome, religiously motivated murder of a beloved pastor in Arizona said he had committed the crime and revealed he had a broader hit list of religious leaders he intended to kill during his murderous rampage.
Adam Christopher Sheafe, 51, told True Crime Arizona Monday that he crucified 76-year-old Pastor William Schonemann, known in the community as “Pastor Bill,” inside his New River home in April.
Sheafe said the attack was part of what he claimed was a divine mission to punish religious leaders who, in his view, were misleading followers.
“I drove from there (Phoenix) to Bill’s house, like two in the morning on a Sunday night, and I executed him,” Sheafe told the correspondent Briana Whitney, who sat across the table from him.
Schonemann was found dead in his bed, covered in blood, on April 28 during a welfare check.
During the interview, Sheafe spoke about the disturbing scene, which included details about a crown of thorns, which he said he made from what he found in the woods, and placed on Schonemann’s head.
“Because what I’m saying is, what you’re preaching is not what God said,” Sheafe explained. “It’s the opposite of what God said.”
Sheafe revealed that Schonemann was not his only target. Prior to the murder, he said he had followed a priest home after Easter services in Phoenix with the intent to kill him — the first of 14 intended “executions” across the country.
“Starting in Arizona, where I was born,” Sheafe said. “Where it starts is where it ends, like the Garden of Eden.”
But he claimed to have stopped that first attempt when two women unexpectedly entered the priest’s garage.
“I’m not interested in executing anyone other than the pastors or the shepherds leading the flock astray,” he said.
After killing Schonemann, Sheafe said he traveled to Sedona, where he planned to murder two more religious leaders. He would later be identified as the suspect in a burglary which led to a high-speed chase with Sedona police.
Hellbound and Down 