‘They’re dangerous:’ Suspect in hospital after police say mother’s attempt to confront man texting her daughter lead to officer-involved shooting

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A suspect is in the hospital after being shot by a Jacksonville police officer early Monday morning.

According to Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, the shooting happened after a mother attempted to confront the 18-year-old suspect about alleged inappropriate texts he’d sent to her 13-year-old daughter.

18-year-old Cerry Banks is facing aggravated assault charges, and is likely to face additional charges, after Jacksonville police allege he threatened a mother and her two children in a Popeyes restaurant in Murray Hill.

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Police claim the mother was confronting him after she discovered he’d been inappropriately texting her 13-year-old daughter.

She coaxed him into a meeting Monday morning according to police, but when confronted, he allegedly showed the family a gun and told them, “When you hear the shots tonight, you’ll know what’s up”.

According to JSO, the mother called the sheriff’s office.

Officials said when police arrived, they confronted the suspect behind the restaurant.

Banks allegedly ran and pulled out his weapon.

Investigations Division Chief Alan Parker said that’s when the responding officer shot the suspect multiple times.

“So, it looks like it was once in his hand, there’s something in the torso, and I heard maybe one in the leg,” said Parker.

Parker said Banks managed to flee and was found in a nearby drainage culvert.

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He was taken into custody and transported to a local hospital, where police reported he is in stable condition as of about 11 a.m.

“You never know what’s going to happen. Luckily, he didn’t shoot them. So, you never know what somebody is going to do when their back is against the wall,” said Parker.

Back in July, St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office posted on social media, highlighting several incidents where local teens had attempted their own sting operations where they would confront alleged child predators in person.

Former FBI agent Dale Carson argued in any scenario, these types of investigations are best left to law enforcement.

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“They don’t want to be identified. They don’t want to go to jail. They don’t want to be stymied by individuals who are attempting to prevent them from accomplishing their criminal act. They’re dangerous,” said Carson.

Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters echoed those comments.

While the mother seems to have been looking out for her young daughter in this case, he said it can be extremely dangerous to confront people with these types of allegations.

“This is a mother who was concerned about her daughter. So, I get it. I understand. But I would say that in most cases in situations like that, call us and have us deal with the situation so it doesn’t unfold like this,” said Waters.

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