Pastor Shot After Praying With Cruz; Suspect IDed

The attempted murder of a pastor in Idaho after his Sunday sermon is drawing extra attention because the pastor had publicly prayed with Ted Cruz only the day before. But whether there's any connection remains iffy, reports the Spokesman Review. The pastor, Tim Remington of Coeur d'Alene, works with addicts and had been threatened previously by some of those same addicts, notes the newspaper. Police on Monday identified a 30-year-old former Marine, Kyle Odom, as the suspect, and he remains at large. The 55-year-old Remington was ambushed Sunday in the parking lot of his church. The gunman shot him as many as six times at close range, including in the head, but, incredibly, Remington is expected to make a full recovery. The gunman "stood pretty professional as he was shooting," says another pastor at Altar Church.

On Saturday, Remington had prayed with Cruz at a campaign rally and gave the invocation at the event. "Our prayers are with Pastor Tim," a campaign spokeswoman tells NBC News. Meanwhile, a Facebook post by a church member is getting wide circulation: "One of the bullets TRIED to enter the brain but stopped at the skull, one of the bullets busted his hip, one fractured his shoulder pretty bad, but he is and will continue to be ALIVE AND SERVING GOD! Just like we all KNEW he would!" Remington and his wife moved to Coeur d'Alene after working in street ministry in California and running a coffeehouse there, according to the church website. Security footage shows that Odom attended the Sunday sermon. Police say he fled the scene in a silver Honda Accord and should be considered "armed and dangerous." (More Idaho stories.)