RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – From the sanctuary to the slammer, police say a central Arkansas pastor is behind bars tonight after he robbed a Walmart.

According to a gas station clerk, a man matching the pastor’s description tried to rob him about an hour before police were called to the Walmart.

Foot traffic inside the Russellville gas station was going just fine for clerk Muhammad Brown early Thursday morning.

“I had a buddy of mine standing at the counter,” he said. “He was trying to find something for me to watch.”

That was until one man entered the store.

“He came in. I greeted him,” Brown said. “He walked to the bathroom didn’t say anything. I got busy doing some stuff.”

Store cameras captured the tense moments that came next.

The man had a shirt covering part of his face, and he walked up and handed Brown a note.

“It says open the register give me the money…something along the lines of don’t press your panic button,” Brown said. “I don’t want to hurt you. Just give me the money.”

Brown says he didn’t see Russell holding a weapon and was unsure of what was going on.

“I took it as a joke at first,” he said.

After seeing that it wasn’t a joke, he grabbed a pen to protect himself.

“I just stared at him and just did this and he stood there and he starred and said ‘oh i’m just playing with you man,” Brown said. “Like it was a joke. That’s really not funny and you really could have gotten yourself hurt.”

What happened next, still has Muhammad mystified.

“He said I’m actually a pastor,” Brown said. “That tore me up. I was like you’re a pastor. I don’t know any pastor that would play that sick joke.”

The man eventually bought something and left, but police say the pastor’s bad habits weren’t over.

Investigators say 33-year-old Dillon Russell robbed a Walmart a couple of miles away.

“He probably does need prayer,” Brown said. “Could have been one of those guys who fell on hard times or something and I guess he felt like that was the only way to do it.”

Investigators are not revealing which church the pastor belongs to .

A judge has ordered him to stay out of Walmart.

He is due in court August 29.