This article was originally published on meadvilletribune.com by Mike Crowley
A Venango man allegedly told police “I’ll (expletive) shoot anyone that comes down here” and “I’ll start spraying lead” at the beginning of a standoff with police and later pointed a rifle at officers as he exited the front door of a Cussewago Township residence earlier this month, according to the criminal complaint filed by police in the case.
Jacob Pond, 24, was then shot by police in the incident. Late Tuesday, he was arraigned on multiple felony and misdemeanor charges before Magisterial District Judge Amy Nicols.
Findings of an investigation into the shooting by the Crawford County district attorney’s office will be released sometime next week, District Attorney Francis Schultz told the Tribune.
The incident that ended with Pond being shot at approximately 2:35 a.m. March 8 began just before 11 p.m. the previous evening when Dwayne Pond called police to his Cussewago Township home, saying Jacob Pond, his son, had likely taken methamphetamine and was acting violently, hallucinating and threatening both himself and his father, according to the probable cause affidavit filed by police. Dwayne Pond later told police that Jacob Pond was staying at his Gospel Hill Road residence because the son’s house had burned down the previous night, according to the affidavit.
When police arrived, they could hear Jacob Pond yelling and throwing things from inside the house, according to the affidavit. As troopers entered the home, Pond continued shouting at them and his father, saying, “Don’t come back here,” “I’m going to kill them” and “I’ll (expletive) shoot anyone that comes down here,” according to the affidavit.
One of the troopers then recognized the sound of a round being chambered in a firearm coming from the bedroom Jacob Pond was in, according to the affidavit, and Dwayne Pond saw his son peak out of the bedroom doorway, holding Dwayne Pond’s SKS rifle as he did so. Dwayne Pond and the officers then exited the house, with police setting up a perimeter around the structure and Dwayne Pond requesting an involuntary mental health commitment for his son.
As Jacob Pond remained inside the house, police awaited the arrival of the Special Emergency Response Team. Before the team responded, Jacob Pond appeared in the home’s open doorway, once again holding the rifle he had been seen with earlier, according to the affidavit. When he allegedly raised the rifle and pointed it at two officers, troopers shot him, according to the affidavit.
Jacob Pond faces two second degree felony counts of aggravated assault, three first degree misdemeanor counts of terroristic threats, two second degree misdemeanor counts of simple assault and one third degree misdemeanor count of criminal mischief. He remains in Crawford County jail in lieu of $30,000 bond.
A preliminary hearing in the case was scheduled before Magisterial District Judge Lincoln Zilhaver on April 9.
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