Man arrested for 'fabricated' story about shooting at Burnet County church: BCSO
BURNET COUNTY, Texas - A man was arrested for reporting a fabricated story to law enforcement after he fired shots near a Burnet County church on Sunday.
According to the Burnet County Sheriff's Office, on Sunday, Oct. 6, just after 10:30 a.m., deputies responded to the Church at the Epicenter on N US 281 for a welfare check due to an unknown 911 call.
"If there’s a thing in you that’s saying this isn’t for real, it is for real," an Epicenter church member told the congregation Sunday morning.
The Epicenter church service in Burnet County was interrupted by a member with an announcement.
"During worship, there were some individuals that were circling the building," the church member said, "Burnet County Sheriff’s Department are outside."
BCSO dispatch reported a man had called 911, gave the address to the church, requested police response, then hung up.
RELATED: Man reports firing shots at 2 'suspicious people' at Burnet County church
When deputies arrived, it "became clear" that shots had been fired, but that all of them came from someone with the church's volunteer safety team, says BCSO.
The safety team member said he confronted two suspicious men outside the church, one of whom presented a rifle, says BCSO. The safety team member fired multiple rounds, causing both men to get in a white minivan and flee the scene, driving north on US 281.
"A man, we don’t know, wearing a full turban, blocking this door, Jacob shouted, he ran that way, there was a van that way, the individual in the van got out with some sort of rifle," the church member told the congregation Sunday morning, "Jacob opened fire, and then they took off."
During an investigation, it was revealed that the story that came from the safety team member was fabricated.
Jacob Tarver, 45
On Monday, Oct. 7, deputies said the safety team member, 45-year-old Jacob Tarver, who fired the shots admitted that he had "fabricated significant details of this incident and lied to law enforcement and others about this incident."
"The team member that fired the shots admitted that he had fabricated significant details of this incident and had lied to law enforcement and others about the incident. There were no hostile actions directed or taken at the church by any persons and no weapons brandished towards the church or the safety team member," Burnet County Sheriff Calvin Boyd said.
At no time was the safety of the church in jeopardy, BCSO said.
"This is such a big deal, I mean we heard from the state, heard from Austin, we heard from the White House, because this really gets everybody’s attention and it was a big deal, and it was a real waste of assets," Sheriff Boyd said.
Tarver was arrested and charged with false report to induce an emergency response, tampering with or fabricating physical evidence, and deadly conduct.
He is in the Burnet County Jail awaiting a hearing to set bail.
Tarver has a criminal history. He was convicted in 1996 in Caldwell for making a false report.