A man who admits murdering and crucifying a Christian pastor is now giving interviews, and says he was doing God’s will, with 13 other Christian leaders targeted for “execution.”
Adam Christopher Sheafe, 51, is openly confessing to killing 76-year-old William Schonemann at his New River, Arizona, home in April.
The victim was found dead in his bed, covered in blood, on April 28, when deputies conducted a welfare check. Sheafe had placed a crown of thorns on the pastor’s head.
If Sheafe had not been captured following a manhunt, the self-admitted killer said 13 others would have been slain.
“I was going to start in Phoenix and end in Phoenix, and circle the nation. Ten cities, 14 pastors, 10 states,” he explained.
“From there, it was Las Vegas, Nevada; Portland, Oregon; Seattle, Washington; Billings, Montana; Detroit, Michigan; New York, New York; Charlotte, North Carolina; Mobile, Alabama; Beaumont, Texas and El Paso, Texas,” he said.
“I was gonna put the Ten Commandments, in order, on each of the priests, on a leather tag in the right ear after I crucified them.”
PASTOR KILLER JAILHOUSE INTERVIEW:
:Adam Sheafe has confessed to killing Arizona pastor Bill Schonemann, and crucifying him after. He describes the lengths he went to carry this out, and I press him on how horrific this is.
His… pic.twitter.com/5Km1CAQBp4
— Briana Whitney (@BrianaWhitney) June 24, 2025
Sheafe is reportedly a believer in the Old Testament only, saying the God of the Bible is not Jesus, but only the Father.
“Christian, Catholic, Mormon. Anyone preaching that Jesus is God, essentially, the Trinity, a concept created by man, by Paul. He’s not God. God, the Father alone, is God,” he said.
HAPPENING NOW: Adam Sheafe is back in court in Coconino County. He first spoke with ABC15 nearly two weeks ago confessing to multiple crimes, including the murder of Pastor Bill Schonemann in New River. He also revealed a plot to kill more religious leaders across the country.… pic.twitter.com/JLThp17Ozl
— Ashley Holden (@ashleyvholden) July 1, 2025
“What I’m saying is, what you’re preaching is not what God said. It’s the opposite of what God said.”
“I don’t hate Christians. I’m after the pastors that are leading them astray.”
Speaking with True Crime Arizona reporter Briana Whitney, Sheafe said:
“I want the death penalty because I want to show that you can’t kill God’s son. The whole story is B.S.”
Whitney: “So, if you’re given the death penalty, it’s not likely you’ll be executed quickly.”
Sheafe: “Well, I want to be executed quickly so we can get this show on the road and show exactly what I’m trying to do … All you gotta do is worship Jesus and you go to Heaven; your sins are forgiven. That’s not what God said.”
Whitney: “But did you think God was going to forgive your sins?”
Sheafe: “Absolutely he will forgive my sins. He is a forgiving God and loving God.”
Whitney: “How do you justify that? I mean, if you’re killing somebody or multiple people – attempted, how does that work?”
Sheafe: “It’s a commandment to rid Israel of evil.”
Schonemann’s family released a statement in the wake of Sheafe going public with the reasoning for his crimes:
“What we have seen over the last week is this suspect enjoying the attention. His side of the story is half of the whole story, and we see the need to cover it however challenging that may be for us,” the family said in a statement seen by Fox 10, although they criticized the granting of a platform to Sheafe.
“We are quite surprised by his ability to freely message with county-supplied devices. We are concerned about his increasing notoriety and possibly gaining a following,” the statement continued.
“He has clearly stated his intentions to continue his mission. From the beginning, our focus has been to stop the suspect before anyone else got hurt. We see the surge of media attention and his ability to communicate freely as a very serious threat to that end.”
In a commentary at Blaze Media, Owen Anderson laments the lack of outrage over the crucifixion-murder of the pastor.
“Had the victim belonged to a different religion – particularly one deemed ‘marginalized’ or ‘indigenous’ – CNN would run wall-to-wall coverage. MSNBC hosts would cry on air about America’s hatred. The Justice Department would announce investigations before the body cooled,” writes Anderson.
“If the killer had cited Christian teachings while attacking a Planned Parenthood activist or drag performer, Los Angeles would be on fire and the Palestinian flag would fly from city hall. But Pastor Schonemann preached Christ crucified. And so, the outrage is muted.”
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