US: Woman opens fire at televangelist Joel Osteen's megachurch in Houston

A woman on Sunday (Feb 11) opened fire at a megachurch of televangelist Joel Osteen in Houston, Texas. Citing the police, a report by the news agency Reuters on Monday said that two off-duty law enforcement officers took down the woman. The incident happened at the Lakewood Church, and the woman was shot dead by the officers, one of whom was a Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission agent and the other a Houston police officer.

Addressing a press conference, Houston Police Chief Troy Finner said the shooter, who was in her 30s, entered the Lakewood Church before 2 pm local time armed with a long rifle and accompanied by a child around 5 years old and began firing.

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Two people, including the child who was with the woman, were injured in the shooting

What happened

Finner told reporters,"She (the shooter) entered the building, she was armed with a long rifle and a trenchcoat with a backpack, accompanied by a small child, approximately four to five years old. Once she entered, at some point she began to fire."

Finner thanked the officers for their immediate action, saying, "I want to compliment the off-duty officers, who were working extra here. One TABC (Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission) agent, four years of service, 38 years old. And HPD (Houston Police Department) off-duty officer, 28 years old, two years of service. Both officers, the officer and agent, engaged, striking the female. She is deceased here on the scene."

Talking about the injured, Finner informed,"Unfortunately, a five-year-old kid was hit and is in critical condition at our local hospital. There was a 57-year-old man who didn't have anything to do with it, I don't think, was shot in the leg. He is seeking treatment in the hospital. So let's all pray for each and every one of them."

The attacker also talked of hiding a bomb which wasn't found anywhere upon search.

"Once she went down, officers reported back to us that she threatened that she had a bomb. So we searched her vehicle, our bomb squad, and also the backpack. No explosives were found. But she was also spraying some kind of substance on the ground," he said.

The Houston police chief also said that the shooting was an isolated incident and there was no further danger to the public.

"But we do want to conduct an adequate search of the building to make sure that nobody is in there hurt. So that will continue. We ask that the public stay away from the area and let us do our job," Finner added.

Joel Osteen reacts to shooting

Reacting to the incident, Joel Osteen prayed for the injured people and the deceased shooter. "Of course, we are devastated, we have been here 65 years and to have someone shooting in your church...But, you know we do not understand why these things happen but we know God is in control, and we are going to pray for that little five-year-old boy, and pray for the lady that was deceased, her family and all, and the other gentleman," Osteen said.

Osteen said that they won't let the shocking incident affect their resilience and faith.

"But I just don't know, I'm kind of in a fog, you know, but just believe that we are going to stay strong. We are going to continue to move forward. There are forces of evil, but the forces that are for us, the forces of God are stronger than that," the televangelist added.

(With inputs from agencies)