A Florida mom set up her own sting operation at a local Popeyes to confront the man who was sexting her 13-year-old daughter, with him later being shot by police.
The unidentified woman became aware that her daughter was having an “inappropriate text relationship” with a man, later identified as 18-year-old Cerry Rodriques Banks, Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office Chief Alan Parker said during a press conference. The mom took her daughter’s phone and “ultimately set up a meeting with the suspect.”
Banks thought he was still messaging the teenager and agreed to meet. They arranged to meet at the Popeyes located off McDuff Avenue in Jacksonville at 7 a.m on November 10.
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Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said the mother was accompanied by her two children to the restaurant. They were then “confronted by an armed suspect who brandished the weapon at her.”
Banks is alleged to have told them, “When you hear the shots tonight, you know what’s up.” The woman then took her children into the restaurant, where she contacted the police.
Parker said during the press conference, “When the officer pulls up at the back, the suspect is still standing at the back of the business. He’s had plenty of time to leave.”
Responding Officer Garrion Robinson approached Banks and gave him “multiple verbal commands” to turn around and show his hands, according to the police statement. However, the suspect fled from the officer and ran behind the Popeyes building.
When Robinson reached the corner of the business, he saw Banks pull the pistol from his waistband. “He yells for him, ‘Drop, stop, gun, gun, gun,’ engages [the] suspect; he shoots him multiple times,” Parker said during the press conference.
However, Banks continued to flee the scene and dropped his gun near a neighboring business. Parker explained, “He continues running. The officer tracks him and loses sight of him.”
Responding officers then set up a perimeter and deployed a K-9 unit to track Banks down. He was found hiding in a drainage culvert without further incident.
The suspect received medical assistance at the scene. Parker said Banks had been shot “once in his hand, there’s something in the torso and maybe one [time] in the leg.”
Banks was transported to a local hospital for treatment and is in stable condition. He is now being held on a $700,000 bond. The 18-year-old has been charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, lewd and lascivious conduct by an offender over 18 against a victim less than 16, unlawful use of a two-way communication device and traveling to meet after using a computer to seduce/solicit/lure a child.
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