Hannibal man facing weapon, harassment charges after shooting incident involving police officer

HANNIBAL, Mo. — A Hannibal man has been charged with unlawful use of a weapon and first-degree harassment in connection to a shooting incident involving a Hannibal police officer.

A warrant was issued Tuesday, March 7 in the 10^th Judicial Circuit Court of Marion County charging Jacob T. Wilson, 37, of Hannibal. The charges are a result of an incident which occurred Monday at approximately 5:07 p.m. when NECOMM received information of a male subject acting suspiciously in the 1200 block of Center Street in a manner which possibly led them to believe the subject was armed. 

When the officer arrived on scene, the male, later identified as Wilson, had a knife in one hand and indicated he had what appeared to be a handgun in his waistband. During the interaction, the officer requested backup and gave lawful commands to not reach for any weapons. Wilson drew what appeared to be handgun and began pointing it in the direction of the officer while still holding the knife.

In a press release from Jacob Nacke, chief of the Hannibal Police Department, he said, “As pictured in image 1 (red circle), you can see Wilson pointing what appears to be handgun in a shooting stance. In image 2 (yellow circle), you can see the knife and suspected handgun (red) being displayed. In image 3 (red circle), you see Wilson pointing the suspected handgun prior to moving toward the officer’s position of cover. 

“When Wilson did not listen to the officer’s command, they took a position of cover and fired rounds at the suspect, which were deflected by the patrol vehicle.”

The release said Wilson was not struck but fell to the ground and was detained. Responding officers secured Wilson and did an assessment for injuries until medical personnel arrived on scene. Wilson was transported to Hannibal Regional Hospital to be evaluated. He was later transported to the Marion County Jail. 

During a review of the incident, it was determined the suspected handgun was not a functional firearm.

The officer involved is a five-year veteran of the Hannibal Police Department. The officer has been placed on paid administrative leave, per department policy, during the review of the incident. 

Wilson remains in the Marion County Jail on $50,000 cash-only bond.