A woman walked into Easter services in Clairemont waving a gun and threatening to blow up the church on Sunday afternoon.
Churchgoers were able to wrest control of the weapon from the woman — who had a 10-month-old toddler with her at the time — and no one was hurt.
The first 911 call came in at 12:02 p.m. reporting the armed woman at the Mt. Everest Academy, on Mt. Everest Avenue north of Balboa Avenue, San Diego Police Sgt. Robert Hawkins said.
Easter Sunday services by the non-denominational Tsidkenu Church were being held at the school.
“Members of the congregation were able to subdue her and get the gun away from her,” Hawkins said. “Police arrived moments later and were able to take her into custody.”
Officers weren’t sure what the woman’s motives were. The gun was determined not to be loaded.
Hawkins said police were taking care of the child and the woman, identified as Anna Conkey, 31, was taken to the San Diego County jail.
The suspect also has a 5-year-old daughter, who was located during a follow-up investigation and found to be healthy and unhurt.
“Both children have been taken into protective custody and will be evaluated by Child Welfare Services, San Diego Police Lt. Shawn Takeuchi said. “The female suspect will be booked into jail on the appropriate criminal charges which will include making criminal threats and displaying a handgun in a threatening manner.”
Due to the threats made by Conkey, police said the school and her vehicle were examined by a bomb-detection dog. Nothing was found and the area was determined to be safe.
Police and sheriff’s deputies have ramped up patrols at local houses of worship following Sunday’s suicide bombings in Sri Lanka that have killed more than 200 people.
Updated at 5:37 p.m., Sunday, April 21, 2019
–From Staff and Wire Reports