Sterling, VA– A 21-year-old YouTuber is recovering from gunshot wounds after a man he was trying to prank shot him inside of a mall.
The incident occurred at the Dulles Town Center just before noon on Sunday.
The Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office says they received a call about shots fired at the mall and arrived to find a man who had been shot in the stomach.
The suspect, Alan W. Colie was also still at the scene and was taken into custody.
Police reported that “the shooting resulted from an interaction between the victim and Colie in the food court.”
The victim who identified himself as Tanner Cook of the Classified Goons on YouTube spoke about the incident with WUSA9.
“I was playing a prank and a simple practical joke, and this guy didn’t take it very well,” Tanner told the news station. “He didn’t say anything to me.”
His father, Jeramy Cook, also spoke to the news station saying that they hope Colie finds GOD:
“We need restoration, we need healing, and we need to come together,” Jeramy told WUSA9. “I pray for this young man and pray that he finds God in this. I believe that God saved our son’s life, and he could have easily died but that’s not the outcome. God has plans for my son.”
The incident was caught on video and has been turned over to police as evidence.
Colie has been charged with aggravated malicious wounding, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and discharging a firearm within a building.
Tanner told outlets that despite the incident, he still plans to make prank videos.