Brave bystander disarms gun waving brawler at Alaska State Fair

An Alaska man is being hailed as a hero for disarming a brute during a brawl that broke out Monday at the Alaska State Fair.

Jaden Perry, 24, rushed in to intervene as a fight broke out around 8:00 pm between two young men, one of whom he saw pull out a gun, as he was helping a friend break down a nearby booth, according to Anchorage station KTUU.

“The first thought that went through my head is there are kids everywhere,” Perry told the station. “I didn’t think much during it, but afterwards I’m glad I did. I would do it again every time.”

“Last thing anybody needs to do is bury their child, take their kid to the hospital, or even a parent, they were everywhere,” he added.

The end of the fight can be seen below (*Graphic content warning):

Breaking News
Thanking Our Community Heroes at the Alaska State Fair

Yesterday at the Alaska State Fair, we were reminded of the power of community and vigilance. A good Samaritan stepped up, potentially preventing a dangerous situation from escalating.

While details are… pic.twitter.com/hMDKWpZFWs

— Rants From Alaska (@AlaskanRants) September 2, 2025

Melissa Keefe, the Alaska State Fair director of marketing and communications, hailed Perry as a hero.

“The Alaska State Fair commends the civilian for his actions to assist CMS in disarming the individual,” she told KTUU. “His actions were heroic. In addition, the actions of several unarmed CMS staff who took action to de-escalate the physical altercations taking place simultaneously during the incident should also be commended.”

“Incidents with weapons are rare. ASF’s Safety Plan has multiple action plans based on the situation. Specifically, if weapons are involved, law enforcement is contacted immediately, while we simultaneously work to de-escalate and end the threat using tactics necessary to ensure the safety of everyone in the vicinity,” she added.

According to Perry, he witnessed at least eight people fighting at the fair, though he only intervened in one fight.

“People need to be aware [that] things go wrong at any minute, no matter where you are,” he said. “It’s not okay for that to happen — at all. That should not have happened in the first place, but people do need to be aware that this is the thing that happens.”

“We’re in an age where this is common. And it saddens me, it does, no matter what kind of gun control or gun laws are put out there, this will happen,” he added.

Correct!

Though just for the record, Alaska has very little gun control, which is a very good thing.

There’s a police department in Alaska that issues AKs over ARs due to their better cold weather performance. pic.twitter.com/UYCpCws7cM

— Weapons Daily (@WeaponsVault) January 19, 2025

This incident involving Perry comes just a week after local police were forced to wrest a toddler away from a man, 22-year-old Jeffry Cook-Reed, before forcefully subduing him.

Videos of the incident showed “officers grappling with Cook-Reed, the child in his arms, before removing the crying toddler and putting Cook-Reed in a chokehold, punching him in the ribs and shocking him with a Taser,” according to the Anchorage Daily News.

In a statement, the police said that a fair attendee called 911 around 8:00 pm on Sunday, Aug. 24, to report that Cook-Reed was causing a disturbance and “walking away with a baby while screaming and yelling,” while also threatening people and seemingly “harming the child.”

It turns out that Cook-Reed already had a warrant in his name for failing to appear in court for a hearing on an assault charge.

As seen in the tweet below, some have taken his side:

Jeffry Cook-Reed, who had an active FTA warrant issued on August 11th, stemming from an original charge of fourth-degree assault, was not informed during this confrontation seen here on video that he had an active warrant. His 20-month old daughter was struck at least once,… pic.twitter.com/ZzmAGnnVC7

— The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Self-Preservation (@TheFATEof2021) August 27, 2025

“They came up out of nowhere, asked me to give them my kid,” Cook-Reed alleged in a statement to the Anchorage Daily News. “Didn’t say they had a warrant or why they were arresting me. They just kind of jumped on me, punched me in my ribs, tased me, sat on my feet. Scared the hell out of my daughter.”

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V. Saxena is a staff writer for BizPac Review with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University.

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