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Man shoots, misses recruiter, kills self in beef with USAF
EFL: A 42-year-old Hayward man with an apparent grudge against the U.S. Air Force walked into a recruiting office Wednesday, shot several times at a recruiter, then killed himself with a bullet to the head. Lt. Steve Pricco said the male recruiter narrowly escaped multiple rounds fired at him by the assailant. "He was very lucky," Pricco said.
Pricco said many questions remained unanswered Wednesday, but a preliminary investigation indicated the gunman walked into the Air Force recruiting office at 1:37 p.m. The man approached a lone Air Force recruiter who was sitting at a desk, working on a laptop. "The suspect mumbled something unintelligible, pulled out a revolver and fired at the recruiter at very close range," Pricco said. One bullet struck the laptop screen, shattering it and sending shards of glass into the recruiter's face.
As the recruiter retreated from the gunfire, the gunman shot at him at least twice more, Pricco said. The recruiter, who suffered some nicks to his face and neck from the destroyed laptop, escaped serious injury. Moments after opening fire on the recruiter, the gunman pointed the revolver toward his own head and fired. He died in the office, just inside the front doors. Pricco said the gunman had left a note on the pavement in front of the recruiting office. While he would not divulge its contents, Pricco said the note indicated that the man had specifically targeted the U.S. Air Force office. The note, handwritten and consisting of about four or five lines, also apparently mentioned several people by name and rank.
"This does not appear to be random, based on the contents of the note," Pricco said, declining to elaborate. He also said the man had written something on the revolver with white marker that further indicated that he was targeting the Air Force. It was unknown what connection, if any, the gunman may have had to the military.
Posted by: Steve 2004-07-01 |
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