The man accused of shooting inside a New Hampshire church is facing more charges, prosecutors say
More charges have been brought against the gunman who allegedly barged into a wedding at a New Hampshire church and began shooting, wounding the bride and the bishop.
Dale Holloway is accused of the shooting inside the New England Pentecostal Ministries in Pelham on Saturday that left 60-year-old Claire McMullen in the hospital with arm injuries and 75-year-old Stanley Choate in serious condition, after he was shot in the chest, the state attorney general’s office said.
The groom, CNN affiliate WHDH reported, was 60-year-old Mark Castiglione, who was struck in the head with a weapon during the shooting and was treated and released from a local hospital, the office said.
The 37-year-old accused gunman initially faced a charge of first-degree assault.
He is now also charged with attempted murder in Choate’s shooting, second degree assault in McMullen’s shooting, simple assault for “striking (Castiglione) in the head with a firearm” and with being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, New Hampshire Attorney General Gordon J. MacDonald said in a statement.
Holloway will make his first appearance in Hillsborough County Superior Court on Tuesday. It’s not clear if he has an attorney.
Pelham is 40 miles north of Boston.
Guests confronted the shooter
Other wedding guests were treated for minor injuries, Pelham Police Chief Joseph Roark said Saturday.
He said the officers who arrived found the guests already had subdued the suspect.
“From my understanding, they basically gang-tackled him,” Roark said.
Angelo Castiglione, the groom’s father, described the shooting to CNN affiliate WMUR.
“I saw a figure in black just run right up the stairs and face the bishop,” said Castiglione. “(The) bishop turned around. Just ‘boom, boom’ and then (the suspect) turned around and aimed at my son and his future wife.”
Castiglione said his other son grabbed the suspect and wrestled with him. Castiglione said his son and the suspect rolled down the stairs and his son got the gun away.
“It’s just a shame. It’s the world we live in today, unfortunately. Nothing is safe,” Castiglione said.
The shooting followed another one
Now, investigators are working to determine whether the shooting is linked to a previous killing involving Brandon Castiglione, the groom’s son, who is accused of killing pastor Luis Garcia this month.
Garcia, 60, worked in the same church in which Saturday’s shooting took place. His body was found at a home in Londonderry on October 1, WHDH reported.
“We are certainly looking into that right now … whether there is, in fact, a clear connection between these two events. That is something we’re trying to put together,” said Benjamin Agati, a senior assistant attorney general.
A memorial service was scheduled to be held for Garcia at the same venue after the wedding.
“It’s just surreal,” Donna Maciver told CNN affiliate WCVB. “Luis was shot, and now there’s a shooting at his church.”
