A New Jersey priest is alleged to have pointed a gun at an eight-year-old boy because he was a fan of the Dallas Cowboys.

Bergen County prosecutors say that Kevin Carter, a priest at St Margaret of Cortona Roman Catholic church in Little Ferry, asked to see the boy in private on 13 September. Carter is a New York Giants fan and was unhappy the boy was supporting the team’s divisional rivals the Cowboys in a game later that day.

Carter reportedly told the boy to stand against a wall before pointing a civil war style musket at him. “As he raised his weapon and pointed it at the boy, he said, ‘I’m going to shoot you,’” Bergen County prosecutor John Molinelli told NBC 4 New York on Friday.

The boy was unharmed but Carter faces charges of endangering the welfare of a child and aggravated assault by pointing a firearm. “The young boy was apparently a fan of a particular football team, the priest was not. So perhaps we have indication it started out as that,” Molinelli said. “There’s no such thing as joking around with a weapon when you’re dealing with an eight-year-old kid.”



A parishioner who witnessed the incident reported it to authorities, who in turn told the prosector’s office on 28 September. When police interviewed Carter and searched the room where the incident is alleged to have taken place they found a musket along with ammunition and gunpowder.



Carter was arrested and jailed on $15,000 bail on Friday. He could not be reached for comment.