One person was injured and another has been arrested following a shooting that occurred in a van in Centralia early Monday morning.
Centralia Police say 26-year-old Alexis Keller of Centerville, and formerly of Centralia, has been arrested for aggravated discharge of a firearm in connection with the shooting of 46-year-old David Knox of South 15th in Mt. Vernon.
Police say the two along with a third person had just left a home on Gragg Street when the shooting occurred after Keller reportedly stopped the van on the side of North Elm Street and fired a handgun twice toward Knox in the back seat.
Knox reportedly wrestled the gun away from Keller at which time she got out of the van and took off running. Knox then began driving the vehicle and called for help. He ended up meeting Central City Police and the Marion County Sheriff’s Department near the Laundromat in Sandoval. Knox was taken by ambulance to SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital in Centralia where he was later released for a wound that entered and then exited his shoulder.
18 minutes after police made contact with Knox, Keller called police to report that Knox had allegedly committed a crime against her friend who was the third person in the car. Police later learned the claim was unfounded and Keller was taken into custody.
Centralia Police plan to process the vehicle to try and recover any gunshot evidence and to confirm how many shots were fired.
The first call about the shooting came in at 2:24 Monday morning.
