Joshua Cummings, Security Guard Shooting Suspect: ‘I did That Purely and Solely for the Pleasure of Allah’

Joshua Cummings, 37, who’s in a Denver jail for the murder of a security guard-slash-pastor, said his actions the night of that fateful shooting were all aimed at pleasing Allah.

Cummings, who spoke behind bars with Rick Sallinger of CBS Denver, wouldn’t admit if he actually shot Scott Von Lanken in the head in late January.

But he did say this, CBS reported:

“‘I give my bay’ah [oath of allegiance] to [ISIS chief] Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and I am committed to being a soldier for the Islamic state,’ he said.

“‘The reason why it was not for ISIS is because in 1996 I took a pledge to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States and obey officers appointed over me and the president, commander in chief of the United States, the military,’ maintained Cummings, who was previously a member of the U.S. Army. He noted that ‘I ratified that in ’97.’

“Cummings added: ‘On the night in question, what I did do, I didn’t do that for the Islamic State. I did that purely and solely for the pleasure of Allah.’”

Van Lanken, who worked as both a pastor and a security guard, was wearing his police-like uniform on January 31 when he was asked for directions by two women in downtown Denver, near Union Station. That’s when he was shot in the head and killed, execution style.

Cummings was arrested for the murder a few days later.