I don't know anything about dozers either except that this guy built a tank! Reports say that he even greased the steel plates to prevent people from being able to climb on top of it.
Posted on 06/07/2004 3:52:36 PM PDT by TERMINATTOR
The whole country saw last Friday’s awe inspiring events taking place in the little tourist mountain town of Granby, Colorado, broadcast by local Denver television affiliates through their network news organizations. Local resident and former muffler shop owner Marvin Heemeyer had finally had enough of being pushed around and told to go to hell by local politicians and public servants, who refer to themselves as "public officials" — the people in charge! The politically correct spin is being applied quite liberally by most of the news media, maligning Heemeyer as a "madman" and Granby town mayor Edward Wang calling him an "unpleasant man, full of bluster and rage — I’m trying to be politically correct, but this guy was a nasty son of a bitch — he had the maturity level of a 5 year old." Nobody else Granby seems to share Mayor Wang’s level of seething hatred of Heemeyer, although Grand County Emergency Management Director Jim Halihan knowingly and deliberately lied to press and news media that Heemeyer had a .50 caliber machine gun and was supposedly shooting at everybody in town. The Denver Post newspaper, channel 9 KUSA and channel 7 KMGH reported this as fact. Only CBS affiliate KCNC channel 4 refrained from broadcasting the lie, and eventually confirmed that Heemeyer did NOT have a .50 caliber machine gun, which they made clear in their broadcast.
While most news media has reported that some unidentified witnesses said that Heemeyer was firing shots form his homemade tank, a D9 Caterpillar bulldozer covered in armor plating and concrete, other witnesses who were less than 100 feet from the 53 ton vehicle say that Heemeyer never fired a shot, that only police and sheriff’s deputies were firing. Certain facts remain indisputable: No weapons or guns have been produced, least of all any kind of a .50 caliber weapon, and no one was hurt or injured during the 2 to 3 hour melee, save for Marvin Heemeyer, who was found dead inside of the cab of the vehicle at 2:00 AM Saturday morning, after SWAT and sheriff’s deputies spent an hour using a cutting torch and 3 separate blasts with military high explosives, to gain entry through the top of the make-shift tank. Grand County Sheriff’s Office released a statement claiming that Heemeyer shot himself in the head with a pistol, and that the pistol was found on the floor of the bulldozer. Heemeyer’s body wasn’t removed until several hours later, because cops said that they feared Heemeyer may have booby trapped himself. There were also claims that Heemeyer had at least 2 rifles mounted up inside the cab of his make-shift tank, aimed out small port holes, however, one local fireman who assisted in extricating Heemeyer’s body from the vehicle, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said that there were no weapons inside of cab, and that he had been present for for several hours and never saw any weapons removed. He had been present when the explosives and the cutting torch were employed to cut a hole into the top of the cab. Both Grand County Sheriff Rod Johnson and Under-sheriff Glen Trainor have refused to say what weapons, if any, were found. Sheriff Johnson reportedly was nowhere to be seen on Friday or Saturday, until he made a statement late Saturday evening, leaving many wondering who was actually in charge of the Grand County Sheriff’s Office — Johnson or Trainor, the latter whom jumped on top of the moving tank and fired 37 rounds from his .40 caliber sidearm, trying to shoot a hole through the armor, which was later described as being 2 plates of half-inch thick steel, with a foot of concrete poured between them.
While Under-sheriff Trainor and the Colorado State Patrol are now claiming that Heemeyer tried to kill two Colorado State Troopers who were hiding behind a concrete wall, this contention is a reversal of earlier statements by cops, who said emphatically that Heemeyer seemed to be going out of his way to avoid hurting anyone, that it was only buildings and vehicles that he was targeting with the slow moving machine. Now, the claim being made by Trainor is that once Heemeyer spotted the cowering troopers, he tried to push a concrete wall on top of them with the bulldozer’s blade, but they managed to escape. None of the eye witnesses support this story. To the contrary, eyewitnesses confirm that Heemeyer never used his homemade tank aggressively toward any people — only buildings and a few automobiles. Trainor was quoted by the press as saying that as soon as he arrived in town, "I knew that this guy had to be killed to stop this." Some cops it seems, just can’t wait to get to pull the trigger!
Heemeyer’s rampage, as press and news media have widely reported, was precipitated by a four year losing battle with the town council of Granby, who, despite widespread opposition from residents, altered town zoning codes and ordinances, to allow Mountain Park Concrete to build and operate a cement batch plant next to Heemeyer’s muffler shop, a move which forced Heemeyer out of business due to the dust and pollution of the plant. Mayor Wang presided over most of the council’s forceful actions. One thing that Colorado news media has not reported, is that Wang, according to many Granby residents, has a very angry and hostile attitude toward all of the residents of Granby and Grand County who opposed Mountain Park Concrete. Many residents have been and still are contending that Wang and the Granby Town Council accepted bribes and payoffs from Mountain Park Concrete, to alter zoning codes and allow them to build and operate. Many Granby residents are calling for Governor Bill Owens, who visited the site of Granby’s destruction, to order the Colorado Attorney General to conduct an investigation of the Granby Town Council and Mayor Wang in regard to their dealings with Mountain Park Concrete. Wang and some of the council members have acknowledged that Heemeyer and others in the past, made allegations of such impropriety and illegal actions, but all say that they did nothing wrong. At least two Granby residents have said, on the condition of anonymity, that Wang and council members have refused to acknowledge whether or not they have received any financial contributions to their election campaigns. Efforts are now underway, under Colorado election laws, to obtain these records.
Some news media sources reported over the weekend, that the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, when asked for information about Marvin Heemeyer’s biography, reported that "their records" indicated that Heemeyer was born in South Dakota. However, the CBI apparently did not say why they had a file on Heemeyer. It has been confirmed that Heemeyer does not have any criminal record, so it remains, "Why does the Colorado Bureau of Investigation have a file on Marvin Heemeyer? Is it for a concealed carry gun permit? Or, as some concerned citizens have said, ‘Wang, the town council and certain Grand county authorities have created an ‘enemies’ list of the people who are politically outspoken and who have opposed various actions of the town council or the county commissioners.’ " It is well known and widely practiced act, in Colorado and around the country, for police and sheriff’s departments, and other agencies, to compile such lists. Only a couple of years ago, it was discovered that Mayor Wellington Webb of Denver, and the Denver Police Department had such lists. They were court ordered to destroy these lists and their data bases, but many sources say the lists continue. Questions must be asked, given the flurry of lies and false information put out by Grand County Under-sheriff Glen Trainor, County Emergency Management Director Jim Halihan and Mayor Edward Wang, and their attempt to demonize a man described by everyone else in Granby, as being a kind, gentle and helping kind of guy. One man whose business was damaged by Heemeyer, appeared to bear little or no animosity toward him, saying that he and Heemeyer went snowmobiling together, as well as many other activities, and that they were good friends. Others in town said, "Marv was the kind of guy who’d do anything to help anybody — he was just simply a nice man. He was pushed into this by these people."
Marvin Heemeyer was a 6 foot-4 inch, 230 pound, gentle giant, according to most of the people in Granby and Grand County who have bothered to speak up. Those who have spoken against him seem to be at a loss as to why nobody is corroborating their statements, or disputing them. Others are pointing out the city’s greed factor — the insatiable lust and desire for MONEY — and their indifference to whom they hurt in their pursuit of that capitalistic gain. Is Edward Wang and the Granby Town Council just another bunch of greedy money whores? One of the council members was complaining Sunday afternoon, that they feared that Heemeyer’s act of destruction would hurt the town’s tourist income. But as many people noted, weekend tourism appeared to be about triple its normal rate, with many curiosity seekers coming to town just to see and photograph the aftermath of Marvin Heemeyer’s last ride. His brother, Ken Heemeyer has been quoted as saying of Marvin, "He was one of the best guys out there. He would bend over backwards for anybody."
Denver’s KCNC Channel 4 took a step in the right direction by reporting the truth about Jim Halihan’s lie and the spurious statement that Marvin Heemeyer was shooting at everybody with a .50 caliber machine gun. Perhaps they’ll have the tenacity to go further, and dig into the activities of Mayor Wang and the town council — and maybe even look at Jim Halihan and Under-sheriff Trainor. Nobody was hurt, save for Marvin Heemeyer, who now lays dead. He wasn’t the "son of a bitch" Mayor Wang claims. Wang, it seems, just hates people who believe in a legal, constitutional process, and who have the audacity to challenge and question elected public servants. Peons and serfs beware! The stories and the facts don’t jive. Maybe the truth will change all of that!
I don't know anything about dozers either except that this guy built a tank! Reports say that he even greased the steel plates to prevent people from being able to climb on top of it.
I can't be certain, but it looks like the air intake might have had some protection on it. In that case, he did a mighty fine job of constructing it so it could not be easily stopped.
Has anyone figured out how he got in? I did not see that answered in the article.
He was only dangerous to tyrants. No crime in that. You have to break a few eggs, to make a freedom omelette.
>>You tellin' me this guy is some kinda hero? <<
After reading the latst overview of what led to the event...
yes.
I think this guy was way to thorough to leave a detail like the air intake open to being corked or flooded. Easy enough to put it inside of his cab. Ditto on masking the exhaust. I think the probably welded himself in after closing the hatch.
He did weld the door shut. SWAT tried opening it with explosives three different times and finally had to resort to using a cutting torch.
What killed him? Did they find any guns inside?
Self-inflicted gun shot to the head.
Is that a fact, or what the SWAT team said after they blew his tank apart? Was he "Vince Fostered" after the fact?
Swat couldn't make a dent in the thing. They had to use a cutting torch to get the door open. There was no activity in the dozer for many hours before they were able to get inside because he was dead. He wasn't going to be taken alive. Watched the news video of the event here in Denver. I was rooting for the guy after learning of his plight and the way he went out of his way to avoid injuring people.
Is it confirmed he died of a self inflicted gun shot?
Denver Post Staff Writers
June 8, 2004; Page B-01
Section: DENVER AND WEST
Article ID: 1207321 -- 758 words
Granby - Marvin Heemeyer apparently was less than halfway finished with his planned rampage through Granby when his armored bulldozer stalled and he killed himself.
Grand County Undersheriff Glen Trainor said that two lists were found in Heemeyer's Grand Lake home, including names and the words "public buildings" written in longhand on 4-by-6-inch paper. He said he had no doubt that those named were people considered to be enemies.
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You can order this and other related articles from the Denver Post website here
Thanks. We'll probably never know for sure.
I don't know if anyone will know the full and complete truth to this story. However, I just got done reading a LONG newspaper article in the "The Denver Post" newspaper about what went on. It is pretty obvious that he had been planning this for at least 6 months based on his actions, divesting himself of most of his possessions and purchasing the steel plates and concrete to convert the bulldozer. Facts are listed that would be easy for anyone to check and either confirm or show as lies (which is unlike the story listed above).
It also included a number of photos. Of course, we all know that photos can be photoshopped. However, I believe the people writing this stuff are too lazy to do that. The photos included a picture of the 50cal Barrett rifle inside the dozer and its bungee cord holder so he could shoot it out a port. Also listed as found inside was a 30cal semi-auto rifle, a .223 Ruger Mini-14, a 9mm Tec-9, and a .357 Magnum revolver. The revolver is reportedly what he used to kill himself.
There are also drawings and photos of the armor plating. This guy spent a lot of time making sure that he could see where he was going, he could shoot out without being shot (at least easily), that the engine could not be flooded out, and that the radiator could not be shot out. For example, the viewing ports had 4 layers of thick plexiglass spaced a few inches apart. If the people on the outside managed to blow through that, he had a 1/2" steel plate to close it off from the inside. A lot of other thought went into this machine to make it virtually unstoppable. If the guy knew how to drive it, it would probably have continued on until it ran out of fuel (which was just less than 200 gallons -- and the tank was full).
I am not happy with bureaucrats that make life miserable for people like this guy. However, I like even less people like the guy who wrote the above article. There are no facts listed above that can be independently investigated and verified or refuted. There are ONLY vague assertions and inuendo that are repeated in an attempt to make this guy a hero. He is not a hero. He is his own form of terrorist. Good riddance.
He is not a hero.
For some people, it is only a short trip to be driven to suicidal insanity. That does not make them a hero or a martyr. As an engineer for a private consultant (who is frequently hired by government agencies due to outsourcing), I have had to deal with nutcases like this on a number of occasions. Fortunately, they did not make a bulldozer into a tank.
However, from what I have read, they all seem to have the same problem that this guy had. There was land nearby his property that he did not own. He did not want anyone else to develop it. Nobody likes change. So he threw every roadblock he could in the planning board, city council, etc to try to stop someone from trying to use their own property as they saw fit. He failed as he should have.
If he had succeeded, you can bet someone would have posted here about some bureaucracy that stopped someone from using their own property as they saw fit and a bunch of others here would say it can be expected for someone treated that way to go crazy and they are a martyr. But they are not.
(I know this is an OLLLD story, but what the hell, no argument worth having is too late!)
So do you think Marvin was allowed to use HIS property as HE saw fit, when the building of this concrete plant went in next to his existing business? Doesn’t such a plant, when it goes through the planning and permit stages, have to submit reports on how its operation will affect existing residents and businesses? Why do they do that?
When Marvin opened his muffler shop the cement plant wasn’t there- indeed it COULD NOT have been because it wasnt zoned for that usage. Until the mayor and town council altered the zoning with a variance, which doomed Heemeyer’s muffler shop because it cut off access for his customers and choked it with dust and pollution.
Would it have been a problem if they opened a giant muffler shop next door or another business compatible with existing zoning ordnances? Doubtful. The mayor and town council altered the zoning for a big wallet, obviously bigger than Marvin’s, and let the chips fall where they may, and fall they did.
Yea, an old story -— LIKE FOUR YEARS OLD. Get a life.
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