Thankfully, police in the town of Fort Wayne, Indiana and the local Allen County Sheriff’s Department managed to stop a potential tragedy when they had to respond to a church parking lot confrontation that almost turned into a quite tragic shooting. That incident occurred during a Central Ministries Nativity scene in which around 100 people were gathered.
The man arrested was Tyler Leavitt, 40, from the nearby town of Spencerville. He, booked into the Allen County Jail after the incident, was accused of having threatened both local police and the crowd of a hundred people, with a New Haven Police Department officer having to request “urgent assistance” because of Mr. Leavitt’s alleged threats, leading to involvement from the Allen County Sheriff’s Department.
According to the documents from the local Allen Superior Court, local media reports, the incident began when an officer with the New Haven Police Department was helping the event by guiding guests through the parking lot. That officer, the court documents allege, greeted Mr. Leavitt, who allegedly responded by pointing a loaded pistol at the New Haven officer.
That turned the pleasant Christmas event into a tumultuous, almost tragic one. Upon pointing his firearm at the officer, Leavitt plowed his car deeper into the parking lot. He was, according to the Allen Superior Court documents, “disturbing the lawful assembly of a live Christmas Nativity event where over 100 people, parents with their children, were gathered along with animals that are commonly associated with the Nativity scene.”
Things then went from unpleasant and shocking to positively frightening for all involved, with Mr. Leavitt allegedly threatening to commit a mass shooting, threatening to kill those gathered for the Nativity event. According to those court documents, “The Defendant screamed that he wanted to kill everyone there.”
It got even worse and more frightening. At the point that Leavitt started making his threats, the Central Ministries Civilian Security Team leaped into action and stopped Leavitt. The team was able to stop him from getting any closer to the gathered crowd of Nativity watchers, and as they did so a police officer grabbed his pistol from him.
Then, as the police demanded he halt his vehicle, Mr. Leavitt allegedly produced another weapon, a knife, and grabbed a human shield. He “used the victim as a human shield,” the aforementioned court documents claimed. He then also allegedly tried to snag an officer’s patrol rifle, court documents claim.
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The Allen County Sheriff’s office, describing how it got involved, said, “On December 7, 2024, at approximately 9:14 P.M., officers with the Allen County Sheriff’s Department responded to 5801 Schwartz Road, at Central Ministries, after a New Haven Police Department officer called for urgent assistance over his police radio. The New Haven Police officer advised that a suspect pointed a firearm at him.”
Continuing, the sheriff’s office said, “An Allen County Sheriff’s Department officer arrived on scene and located the suspect, along with other officers, on the church property. There was a large outdoor event taking place at the church. During the investigation, an Allen County Sheriff’s Department officer discharged their duty weapon.”
It further added that there were two victims and one detained suspect, though without noting who it was that was injured by gunfire, writing, “Two people from the scene were taken to a local hospital in fair to serious condition. There is one suspect detained at this time. The Indiana State Police were called to the scene as standard Sheriff’s Department policy. This is an active and ongoing investigation.”
Central Ministries, posting on Facebook about the event, wrote, “We are praising God for His protection tonight. We are ready to show up in the morning for a time of worship to The God who is our peace, our protector, the only God who can turn a tragedy into a beautiful time for the body of Christ to come together.”