87-year-old man accused of killing his roommate was turned in by his pastor: report

An 87-year-old Maryland man accused of killing his roommate was turned in by a church pastor, according to a report.

​Irwin Joseph Dickstein allegedly admitted to the shooting when speaking to a witness and revealed where it happened, Frederick Police Department said in a statement.

When authorities subsequently conducted a welfare check at Dickstein’s address in Frederick, a city located around 50 miles from Baltimore, they found the body of 63-year-old Michael Roy Bushnell.

The older man was taken into custody and has since been charged with one count of first-degree murder and one count of second-degree murder.

​Court documents obtained by Fox 5 DC said the shooting occurred on Sunday September 20 after Dickstein and Bushnell had an argument. ​Neighbors told the outlet Bushnell claimed Dickstein had switched off their home’s electricity while repairing an outlet, causing the former to become upset.

​An associate pastor at the Frederick Christian Fellowship later told the sheriff’s office one of his congregants had confessed to the killing, charging documents obtained by The Frederick News-Post state.

Separately, the sheriff’s office spoke with a man who had driven Dickstein to the Frederick Christian Fellowship. ​The man said the 87 year-old had placed an item in his car trunk, with the police recovering a handgun from a case found inside vehicle.

​Police said Dickstein was arrested without incident and taken to the Frederick County Adult Detention Center, before appearing in front of a District Court commissioner.

​“This remains an active and ongoing investigation,” police said in a press release.

​Paula Brooks, an attorney at the Frederick County Public Defender’s Office, called for Dickstein to undergo a competency evaluation during a bail hearing, the News-Post reports. The judge declared that Dickstein will be held without bail until a competency hearing takes place.

​Frederick County State’s Attorney’s Office Spokesperson Jacqueline Rottman told the outlet that Dickstein will be granted a new bail review should he be found to be competent to stand trial.

​“Regardless, we will ask he be held since he presents a danger to the community,” Rottman told the publication.

The Independent has contacted Rottman and the Frederick Christian Fellowship for comment.