Mum points gun at her baby and threatens to blow up church in front of horrified worshippers
A MUM pointed a gun at her 10-month-old baby and threatened to blow up a church in front of horrified worshippers, cops say. Distressing footage shows Anna Conkey, 31, brandishing a gun while cradling her son after storming a church in California on Easter Sunday. Witnesses say she yelled “everyone is going to die” after […]
A MUM pointed a gun at her 10-month-old baby and threatened to blow up a church in front of horrified worshippers, cops say.
Distressing footage shows Anna Conkey, 31, brandishing a gun while cradling her son after storming a church in California on Easter Sunday.
Witnesses say she yelled “everyone is going to die” after interrupting the service at Tsidkenu Church in San Diego which was filled with 100 worshippers.
At one point, officials say she aimed the gun at her 10-month-old son, but the baby was not harmed.
Churchgoers tackled and disarmed Conkey shortly before cops arrived at the non-denominational church.
Police took Conkey into custody and found the gun was not loaded – but ammunition was found at her home.
Conkey pleaded not guilty to several felony counts including child abuse, making criminal threats and a false report of a bomb.
The mum-of-two, who is a former freelance digital producer for NBC 7 and was in the US Navy, is facing more than 23 years in prison.
CCTV footage of the moment she stormed the church in April this year was released by police on Friday.
In the video, Pastor Ben Weisen remains calm and tells worshippers to “get down and pray” after she stormed to the front during his service.
He told a preliminary trial that Conkey said: “You don’t know what it means to be willing to die”.
“She had a baby and a gun and we had a pretty good feeling that she was going to get shot and maybe some of our people were going to get shot,” he added.
To stop the packed congregation from panicking, Weisen told his worshippers the gun was a Taser.
“I thought first I’m pretty sure that’s a real gun,” he said.
“And then I thought, OK there’s something that looks like a Taser and I know this would keep people a lot calmer so I’m just gonna say it’s a Taser out loud.”
Just five minutes before she entered the church, Conkey emailed her former employer NBC news with a tip.
The email read: “There’s a woman claiming to be the Messiah, saying she was sent to blow up the foundation of the Church — she’s got a gun and a child is involved.
“The address is 4350 Mount Everest Blvd San Diego, CA 92117. There are about 70 people in the auditorium of the school where the church service is held.”
MOST READ IN NEWS
Prosecutors said in court that Conkey dialled 911 before the incident to report a threat.
She had previously posted videos on YouTube claiming a “great deception” was taking place in churches and synagogues.
Following the incident her two children, aged five and 10 months, were taken into protective custody.
We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? Email us at tips@the-sun.co.uk or call 0207 782 4368 . You can WhatsApp us on 07810 791 502. We pay for videos too. Click here to upload yours.