STERLING, Va. - A prank being recorded for YouTube could be the cause of a shooting over the weekend inside a Virginia mall food court.The victim’s father says his son, 21-year-old Tanner Cook, is a YouTube influencer known for recording comical escapades at malls.
His father says he was recording a prank Sunday for YouTube, involving Google’s translate feature, when 31-year-old Alan Colie became offended and reportedly shot him in the abdomen.
Cook remained hospitalized Tuesday. "He has a YouTube channel, and he goes to malls, and he tries to have fun and do goofy stuff and try to get people to laugh to watch his videos," Jeremy Cook said. "This guy wasn't laughing.
He wasn't having a fun time, and decided to shoot my son because he was offended. It's too bad people today seem to take getting offended too far."Tanner Cook apparently moved to Virginia a couple of months ago to pursue his dream of being a YouTube influencer.