Who is Alan Colie? Timeline of Tanner Cook shooting incident explained
By William Rodriguez
Trigger Warning: This article contains references to physical assault
A YouTube content creator known for his practical jokes and a food delivery man who used violence against him in a Virginia shopping center were shown in a courtroom setting in a video. Tanner Cook, 21, the owner of the Classified Goons YouTube channel with more than 50,000 subscribers, was shot, and Alan Colie, 31, was found not guilty of aggravated malicious injury.
The jury, however, could not agree on how to rule on two minor gun offenses, so they chose to condemn him on one and acquit him on the other. Colie was accused of engaging in a smartphone fight, which according to the prosecution was not a situation that called for the use of a firearm.
What happened between Tanner Cook and Alan Colie?
In April 2023, Cook followed Colie around while making strange noises from his phone as he picked up a food order at the food court of the Dulles Towne Center Mall when the incident happened. Using a Google Translate application, the phone repeatedly plays the sentence "Hey dips—t, quit thinking about my twinkle."
AdvertisementBefore grabbing a revolver and shooting Cook in the lower left chest, Colie warns Cook to stop three times and tries to knock the phone out of his face. As a result of the incident, customers fled in fear of a mass shooting. Colie, who is authorized to carry a concealed handgun, received support on social media, and Cook was criticized for harassing a stranger. According to a statement by the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office, the two did not know one another before it happened.
Jury's decision on charges against Alan
Nevertheless, the jury favored Alan's claim of self-defense, which is often made by people who can show a reasonable belief that they are about to suffer significant physical injury.
Charges against Alan for aggravated malicious wounding and malicious discharge were later dropped. He is still accused of firing a gun into an occupied house, a felony that carries a maximum 10-year prison sentence.
