PORTLAND, Tenn. (WTVF) — Exclusive video reveals new details about a shooting outside a Portland gym.
The victim is lucky to be alive and investigators say what happened could have been much worse.
It was 9:45 in the morning Wednesday outside Planet Fitness in Portland when police say a man with a 9mm showed up with a plan to commit a mass shooting.
This security video shows how it all started.
It is chilling and illustrates just how close the victim came to being fatally shot.
Watch closely above.
The victim in a white hat is walking from left to right in front of the building. He then turns around and starts walking back in the other direction.
As he does that, you see the gunman, Coltin James Lynch, 27, walk in from the right. He strolls up right behind the victim, lifts his arm and points a gun at the man’s head and fires.
At that instant, the victim somehow managed to turn his head and the bullet fired at point blank entered around his jawline.
Injured, he ran to a nearby restaurant where they called 911.
Lynch walked away. His family says he was schizophrenic and despite their pleas, he refused treatment.
They don't know how he obtained the gun and believe he targeted the victim at random. Police agree and believe when the innocent victim escaped it rattled Lynch who then abandoned his plan to shoot others and left the scene.
He was later found deceased from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in Kentucky.
The victim in this case did have several injuries including a fractured jaw where the bullet entered. He underwent surgery. The good news is he's expected to recover. NC5.
Authorities are still working the case tonight checking among other things to see if anyone else was involved with Lynch's plan.
If you have more information about this story, please email me at nick.beres@newschannel5.com
Fostering Hope provides Christmas for kids in foster care. I'm delighted to see Fostering Hope expand this year to expand their reach to now include kids in Foster care in metro AND foster kids in East TN hard hit by Helene.
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