Man accused of shooting prank YouTuber appears in court

STERLING, Va. — A grand jury will hear arguments after a man reportedly shot a YouTube creator who was pranking the 31-year-old man while recording a video at Dulles Town Center.

Alan Colie appeared in court Wednesday. He is accused of shooting Tanner Cook while Cook was recording a prank video for the YouTube channel Collective Goons, which has more than 41,000 subscribers.

Cook testified in court Wednesday, saying he was playing a Google Translate prank on Colie where he would play "goofy woods." Colie's defense lawyer said Cook was playing the phrase "hey dipsh**, stop thinking about my sparkle." 

Detective Katie Mitchell of the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office previously said Colie, who was at the mall to pick up food for DoorDash, told Cook to stop several times and tried to walk away. Despite swatting the phone away from his face, she said Cook persisted.

Cook could not remember a lot of details when asked in court but did acknowledge holding the phone about six inches away from Colie's face. 

Colie's lawyer argues that Cook was "towering over" the suspect, threatening, harassing and targeting him. 

"He's making money by causing fear in individuals," the defense lawyer said.

Commonwealth's attorneys fought back, saying Cook presented no threat as he had no weapons and did not made physical contact with Colie. They said while Colie backed away from Cook, he ultimately responded unreasonably. 

During the Wednesday hearing, Cook and the judge watched the recorded video that shows the moment he was shot. Reporters in the courtroom were not able to see the video but could hear Colie saying "no" several times and "stop" before the sound of a gunshot.

Ultimately, the judge ruled there is probable cause to move the cause to a grand jury, saying while Cook's action was an "obnoxious manner," the use of deadly force wasn't justified. 

Colie faces charges of aggravated malicious wounding, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony and discharging a firearm within a building.

Deputy Commonwealth Attorney Anthony Needham has previously said the Loudoun County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office is looking into also possibly charging Cook.

Despite his injuries, Cook told WUSA9 he plans to continue making videos because it is his passion.

Natalie Lomax said she and her sister experienced one of Cook’s pranks in Loudoun County about three weeks before the shooting. However, Lomax said she prefers to describe them more as harassment.

“It’s incredibly upsetting,” Lomax said. “It makes me angry and makes me worried for my community.”

Jeramy Cook, Tanner Cook's father, told WUSA9 that their family has dealt with the national spotlight and major backlash since the shooting. While many agree, this level of violence is wrong, they also disagree with Tanner Cook's content. 

"It's unfortunate," Jeramy Cook said. "I'm getting all kinds of messages from people around the country saying that my son got what he deserved and, matter of fact, they feel like he should have died."

Tanner Cook, of the prank YouTube channel 'Classified Goons,' was shot at Dulles Town Center in Virginia. His story has gone viral.