The man who jumped a playground fence at Belmont United Methodist Church and ran into the building as a day school was in session at 11:30 a.m. today is being charged with making a threat of mass violence in a school, aggravated criminal trespassing, and making a false report of an emergency.
Damian Rucker, 39, was taken into custody by officers who rushed to the church campus after receiving a call that an active aggressor had entered the building.
Rucker jumped the fence on Acklen Avenue as three classes of students were on the playground. He gained entry to the building as two persons opened a door to come outside. The day school hallway, where other students were in class, was inaccessible to Rucker due to special locking mechanisms. Officers and detectives from the Midtown Hills Precinct, some of whom were first on the scene at The Covenant School on March 27, arrived within minutes, rushed into the building, and began clearing it. Rucker was found in a third floor room. Officers tackled him as he ran from that room to another. He carried no weapons or harmful items.
After his arrest, Rucker’s statements included, “God sent me here to rid the children of evil by blowing this place up and all places of worship to rid children of evil,” thus the charges of making a threat of mass violence and making a false report of an emergency.
A judicial commissioner set Rucker’s bond at $80,000.
There were 57 students and 19 staff members at the day school today. None was injured.
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Damian Rucker, 39