White Oklahoma Homeowner Shoots Black Teen He Thought Was Shooting at Police – He Was Wrong

A white Tulsa homeowner was accused Wednesday of shooting and intending to kill a teen accused of stealing $12 in one armed robbery and running from police in a second.

Zachariah Cook told police he heard shots fired at officers, so he retrieved his gun and shot at least twice at a teen who had hopped his backyard fence, according to a probable cause affidavit Tulsa World obtained.

However, there have been no reports of police or suspect gunshots in the incident, Tulsa World reported.

The situation unfolded when two people were accused of robbing a man mowing his lawn around 8:15 p.m. in the 9800 block of East 12th Street.

The robbers took $12 and a debit card and rode away from the scene after getting into a car, police told Tulsa World.

Officers were able to get a description of the vehicle from a neighborhood surveillance camera, and about 15 minutes later the robbers reportedly struck again farther south.

An officer spotted the car in South Tulsa near 11th Street and Sheridan Road, Tulsa World reported.

The suspects then led police on a chase that ended in a crash into a chain-link fence near 12th Street and Fulton Avenue, officers told reporters.

The suspects got out of the car and ran, but police caught 20-year-old Andrew Peyton, Fox 23 News reported.

Jalen Cooper, 17, reportedly surrendered to authorities after Cook shot his younger brother, whom officers have not identified publicly.

The teen was taken to a nearby hospital, where he is expected to recover, Fox 23 reported.

Officer Danny Bean of the Tulsa Police Department noted,

“The homeowner was in his backyard with his gun and he fired maybe two shots, striking one of the suspects one time. “He did think maybe the officers were in trouble, maybe their lives were threatened or his as well, is what he stated originally.”

Cook was booked into the Tulsa County jail on a complaint of shooting with intent to kill but has since been released on a $75,000, according to Fox.

The Tulsa County District Attorney’s Office will determine if the shooting was justified.

Police are still searching for a woman believed to be involved in the incident, Fox reported.

Peyton faces two robbery charges and charges of possession of a stolen vehicle and possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony, according to Tulsa County Jail records.