Witnesses: Pastor Fights With Teen, Fires Shots Outside Church

COLUMBUS, Ohio—Shots were fired outside a Northeast Side church Thursday, and police said the pastor might have been the one with the firearm.

NBC 4’s Mike Bowersock reported with the FAST FACTS.

CPD was called to the area of Joyce and East Blake avenues on reports of a shooting at about 12:20 p.m.

The details remained unclear, but NBC 4 talked to neighbors and witnesses. None of the following information was confirmed by police.

Laquevan Cook, 18, and his teen girlfriend were arguing outside The New Jerusalem Missionary Baptist Church in the 200 block of Joyce Avenue.

The pastor heard the commotion and came out of the church to break up the fight.

The pastor became involved in an altercation with Cook and his girlfriend.

Cook said he told the pastor to get out of his girlfriend’s face and then the pastor swung on him.

As many as nine church members and some of Cook’s friends or family members entered the situation, too, in a neighborhood brawl of sorts.

Witnesses said the pastor went into the church, got a firearm and fired the weapon. That information was not confirmed by police.

Cook said the pastor shot him.

“I heard the gunshots, and I came outside,” witness Shon Thomas said. I went to go see what was going on. Me and my neighbors heard the gunshots. When I came out, I saw that the one guy was over here tussling and then shots ran out, and the young man ran out from inside of the building over here where the ambulance picked him up.”

Witnesses said six shots were fired.

A firearm was found in the church’s office.

Cook was transported to OSU Medical Center Main in stable condition. He had a gunshot wound on his shoulder. Cook also broke his arm in the fight.

No one else was injured.

The pastor was taken into custody. There wasn’t word on whether charges were filed.

“I go to church and stuff, but I never thought a pastor would do something like that,” Cook said.

No more immediate information was available.

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