KTVI-TV photojournalist Brian Ledford and reporter Andy Banker were shot at with pellet gun munitions while reporting in St. Louis, Missouri, on Nov. 20, 2023. Ledford was not hit, and Banker was not seriously injured. A suspect has since been arrested on charges of assault.
Banker reported for KTVI that he was standing on a residential street in South St. Louis at around 12:45 p.m., using his phone to send an email, when a car drove past.
“Photographer Brian Ledford and I first heard the rapid fire, then saw what appeared to be gel-blaster-style guns made for airsoft games,” he said. “There were male teens firing pellets directly at us from the front and rear passenger seats.”
In a social media post, Banker called the incident “extremely unnerving,” stating that the pellets struck him in the head and torso.
Neither Banker nor Ledford responded to requests for comment.
KTVI reported on Nov. 21 that St. Louis Metropolitan Police arrested the alleged driver, a juvenile, and are still searching for the two passengers who are suspected of firing the gel-blaster guns.
This content originally appeared on U.S. Press Freedom Tracker: Incident Database and was authored by U.S. Press Freedom Tracker: Incident Database.
U.S. Press Freedom Tracker: Incident Database | Radio Free (2023-11-27T19:49:34+00:00) St. Louis TV crew shot at with pellet guns, suspect arrested. Retrieved from https://www.radiofree.org/2023/11/27/st-louis-tv-crew-shot-at-with-pellet-guns-suspect-arrested/
Please log in to upload a file.
There are no updates yet.
Click the Upload button above to add an update.