Another attack on a church was stopped.
This time it was a church service filled with children; 2nd graders.
Churchgoers in Louisiana had to stop a black teenager wielding a gun who tried to crash a livestreamed service.
Thankfully, police swooped in when the 16-year-old attempted a backdoor entry at St. Mary Magdalen Church in Abbeville.
With around 60 children awaiting their first Holy Communion inside, it was a moment of quick thinking and safety first.
Louisiana church thwarts mass shooting at service packed with kidshttps://t.co/TwLD2F6IQE
— Itchy Palm Bob 96 (@BobDavis96) May 14, 2024
NBC News reports:
Churchgoers thwarted a teenager armed with a rifle from entering a Louisiana church full of children Saturday in a service that was being livestreamed, authorities said.
ADVERTISEMENTPolice were called to St. Mary Magdalen Church in Abbeville, 20 miles south of Lafayette, at 10:35 a.m. when the 16-year-old suspect tried to get in via the back door.
Around 60 children were inside the Catholic church at the time waiting to take their first Holy Communion, the church said.
The church said in a statement that parishioners confronted the suspect and took him outside before calling the police.
A recording of the livestream, broadcast by multiple local news stations, showed a man approach the Rev. Nicholas DuPré after 48 minutes to whisper something. DuPré then stops the service and asks churchgoers to join him in prayer, as people audibly panic and some begin to scream.
Police officers can then be seen walking through the church, as boys run across the altar and the clergy take shelter. Someone is heard to say over a loudspeaker: “Guys, just get ahold of your children, go slowly. We did apprehend a child, he is in custody.”
Abbeville Police Chief Mike Hardy said in a statement on Facebook that the suspect was “confronted by parishioners and escorted outside.” Police then arrived and placed him in custody, before sweeping the church to ensure there was no further threat and there had been no injuries.
The suspect was arrested and later charged with terrorizing the church and two counts of possession of a firearm by a juvenile. Witnesses told KADN of Lafayette that he was dressed all in black and armed with the rifle.
He was questioned at Abbeville Police Department, alongside a parent, before he was taken to Abbeville General Hospital’s behavioral unit for evaluation, police said.
In this election year, we’re seeing an increase in spiritual attacks.
This is just another case that adds to that pile of confirmation that our enemies are indeed desperate.
Pray against their attacks. Pray over your churches, your families, your homes and even yourself before you leave the house.
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