A 26-year-old outreach director is in critical condition after being reportedly shot in the head Wednesday while street preaching outside a Glendale, Arizona, church, according to multiple outlets.
During a press briefing, Glendale Police Department (GPD) Officer Gina Winn stated that Hans Schmidt was standing on the busy street corner around 6:00 p.m. local time on Wednesday, where he was “preaching about a church service at a local community church” when an unknown perpetrator shot him in the head. (RELATED: Florida High School Teacher Charged With Shooting Wife And Brother-In-Law While Together For Wedding: REPORT)
Friends of the 26-year-old said he had been out on the corner with a megaphone preaching to people as they passed by, an activity that was common for him, according to AZ Family. One local resident noted that people had been “yelling at him,” telling Schmidt to “get off the street,” per the outlet.
“There was a lot of everything, really — hateful comments, people yelling at him, ‘get off the street,’ all sorts of mean things,” Paul Sanchez, a local worker who was nearby at the time of the incident, told AZ Family.
@GlendaleAZPD spokeswoman Gina Winn hoping witnesses come forward leading to arrest of person who shot Veteran Hans Schmidt 51st Ave & Peoria. He was shot around 6pm Nov. 15th while standing on the corner peaching ,he remains in critical condition #fox10phoenix pic.twitter.com/D2oyAQ0V8l
— Rick Davis (@rdavisfox10) November 17, 2023
Schmidt is a military veteran who is recently married and has two small children, the outlet noted. His wife posted to Instagram on Thursday confirming he had been shot, asking for prayers and imploring anyone with information to contact 911.
Victory Chapel First Phoenix, where Schmidt currently serves as outreach director, posted an update on the 26-year-old’s condition to its website, stating that he had “began seizing and was intubated” after being taken to the emergency room. While there has been “some movement,” doctors remain “uncertain how much is voluntary and began draining fluid from his brain,” per the update.
Winn told reporters that although GPD detectives are reviewing a “huge amount” of surveillance footage, due to the large foot traffic from the busy street corner, authorities remain unaware of the circumstances that led to the shooting, including whether Schmidt was shot by a pedestrian or by someone in a passing car, according to AZ Family.
Authorities are asking locals to come forward with any information that might help. (RELATED: Legally Armed Female Bystander Defends Man Allegedly Shot In Face By Attacker)
“This is a horrible, horrible event. We have a 26-year-old who is a military man, who was recently married and has two small children. He’s in a critical state,” Winn stated, per the outlet. “We believe there is someone in the Valley who knows what happened. If you saw an individual or vehicle, you’re asked to call the Glendale Police Department.”
Victory Chapel First Phoenix is accepting donations to cover Schmidt’s medical expenses.