San Francisco:

Police in USA’s San Francisco have reported that there was an assault in a Catholic church in North Beach on Sunday leading to a pursuit of the assailant and the setting off of an explosive device. It was at the Saints Peter and Paul Church that an assault took place, according to the San Francisco Police Officers Association (SFPOA) post on X.

“Responding officers encountered a suspect with an improvised device,” the SFPOA said in its post, adding that “A pursuit occurred.” Later, the assailant was apprehended by officers in another county. It is reported that the incident occurred soon after a person received communion but failed to consume the sacred host during the 5 pm Mass. When a believer told the person not to leave the church without consuming the sacred host, the assailant punched him before exiting the building.

According to City Supervisor Aaron Peskin, the assailant set off a pipe bomb when the police pursued him. The suspect fled in a vehicle when investigators arrived on the scene and this led to a pursuit. While being chased by police, the culprit set off a pipe bomb on the 1500 block of Jones Street near Nob Hill.

When the police relentlessly pursued the assailant, the man ignited a Molotov Cocktail on Eighth Street between Market and Mission. The church that suffered the attack is manned by the Salesian priests of the Western United States.