Shooting of a security guard outside an ammonia terminal on the Texas Gulf Coast,

Reuters ^ | Sat January 24, 2004

[Athene]

Police Investigate Texas Chemical Port Shooting Sat January 24, 2004 04:10 PM ET

HOUSTON (Reuters) - U.S. and Texas law enforcement agencies are investigating the shooting of a security guard outside an ammonia terminal on the Texas Gulf Coast, a law enforcement official said on Saturday.

A security guard at the BASF Corp. ammonia terminal in Freeport, Texas, 60 miles south of Houston, was shot late on Friday by a man in a pickup truck parked outside the terminal's fence and within sight of a multistory ammonia tank, said Henrietta Gonzalez, chief of the Freeport Police Department.

The guard was listed in good condition on Saturday at an area hospital where he was recovering from a gunshot wound to the shoulder, said BASF spokesman Tim Fitzpatrick.

Agents from the FBI, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Texas Department of Public Safety and U.S. Coast Guard were in Freeport investigating the shooting, Gonzalez said.

Chemical plants and refineries have tightened security since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks for fear they may be targets in a future attack.

An FBI spokesman was not immediately available to comment.

The guard spotted the pickup truck while making his rounds outside the terminal's grounds. When confronted, the truck driver, whom the guard described as having a heavy Middle Eastern accent, said he was taking pictures of the lights of the ammonia terminal and adjacent port, Gonzalez said.

The guard said he turned away to make a radio call and then looked back to see the driver pointing a handgun at him. He was shot as he moved to run away and the driver sped off. © Reuters 2004. All Rights Reserved.

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1064482/posts

Here is the ap version of this from earlier.

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

The ap version only described the driver/shooter as having really bushy hair.

[deport]

Getaway Gunman Shoots Chemical Plant Guard

From CNN

Security guard at Texas chemical plant shot

Police hunt man who sped away in truck

Saturday, January 24, 2004 Posted: 1724 GMT ( 1:24 AM HKT)

FREEPORT, Texas (CNN) -- Police on the Texas Gulf Coast were searching Saturday for a man who shot and wounded a security guard at a chemical plant Friday night.

The guard was shot in the shoulder by a man he came across while conducting a routine patrol of the factory. The guard, whose name was not released, is in stable condition after surgery at a local hospital, Freeport Police Chief Henrietta Gonzalez said.

The guard approached a man in a pickup truck parked in a suspicious area, she said. The man rolled down his window and told the guard he was taking pictures of the lights around Freeport's port area and the BASF plant, Gonzalez said.

When the guard reached to open his microphone to report to his dispatcher, the driver of the truck pulled a gun and fired, hitting him in the right shoulder, she said.

The shooter sped away, and the guard drove himself to the factory gate where he knew armed, off-duty Brazoria County Sheriff's officers, employed by the company, were posted. The 911 call was made at around 9 p.m. local time, she said.

The guard said the male shooter had dark hair, a dark mustache and had not recently shaved. He spoke in accented English, the guard told authorities.

The FBI is monitoring the situation but said the Freeport police is the lead agency, FBI agent Bob Dogium said. "Right now there's no indication that it was terrorism," he said.

Gonzalez said the suspect was driving a white, half-ton, dual-cab Chevrolet pickup truck with dark-tinted windows and no front license plate, which is required in Texas. The security guard said he could not see if there was a rear plate because the tailgate was down, she said.

Police have found the slug, which went through the guard's shoulder, and are testing it. Gonzalez said officers believe it came from a 9 mm or .380 handgun.

The Ludwigshafen, Germany-based BASF is one of the world's largest chemical manufacturers. The Freeport complex includes 16 plants, including an ammonia plant next to the deepwater cargo port. The facility produces adhesives, super absorbers, paints, nylons and plastics.

Freeport is on the Gulf of Mexico about 60 miles southeast of Houston.

[TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig]

Attencion por favor. Might be he shot himself twirling his weapon but this should be filed in the "Hmmmm" file.

[Viking2002]

'Thick Middle Eastern accent'. You know what? If they catch this guy, we'll never hear about it. If they don't catch this guy, we'll never hear about it. We need to find a local Texas Freeper with a good multiband scanner. An ammonia storage tank would gas thousands.

I'm not a chemist - does ammonia burn easily?

[hadaclueonce]

I am betting, and hoping, they shooter was the husband of the woman that the guard was being "friendly" with...

[eastforker]

I think they meant SW of Houston, How do they get stuff like that wrong.

[eastforker]

Yeah, your lungs.

[Viking2002]

Allow me to rephrase that - is it flammable?

[Travis McGee]

Good point. Did anyone else see the truck? Better check the guard's pistol too.

[daybreakcoming]

They are headlining it locally in Houston area but in the same breath kinda playing it down.
Louisiana does not require plates on front - just in back -don't know about other states.

[Quix]

DUH, DUH, DUH, DUH, DUH, DUH!!!

Sheesh. Oh, technically.

But NO indication it was related to terrorism? Al Qaeda Intel says such plants will be targeted.

Such a person is caught doing recon on such a plant.

Still, NO indication.

Duh.

Maybe we deserve to be nuked for sheer idiocy.

[deport]

Or a drug deal going down that got interrupted.....

[jerseygirl]

I think they just don't want us to panic.

[woofer]

Or a drug deal going down that got interrupted.....

More likely a theft as ammonia, especially its agricultural cousin anhydrous ammonia, is a perferred chemical in the production of Meth.

[deport]

At this stage there is a lot we don't know about what was happening...... We have a story with bits and pieces and that's it..... It may or may not even be related the plant at all..... Someone approaches a vehicle in an area where it could arouse suspicion as to why it's there and asked the driver...... Maybe the driver told the truth as to what he was doing but then we don't know. If he was there for something else nefarious such as drugs I doubt he would tell that to the guard..... Too much is unknown to us at the present time

The his thread is about 150+ post with some locals on it

A Houston Chronicle Article.......

Guard shot by man photographing plant

By PEGGY O'HARE
Copyright 2004 Houston Chronicle

FREEPORT -- The shooting of an unarmed security guard at a chemical plant here drew the attention of national security officials because the assailant, who spoke with a heavy accent, told the guard he was taking photographs of the plant.

But after repeated interviews with the shooting victim, federal authorities today said they have even less reason to believe the attack was the work of terrorists.

"As we have looked at this, we don't believe we have any kind of a terrorist threat or that there was any kind of terrorist planning or organization going on," FBI spokesman Bob Doguim said today.

Robbie House, a security guard contracted by BASF, told authorities his attacker was possibly of Middle Eastern or Pakistani descent. He also told police the gunman claimed to be photographing lights when the confrontation occurred in an isolated area near BASF's ammonia terminal on FM 1495 late Friday.

House, who was shot in the shoulder, is expected to make a full recovery, but the gunman and his truck have not been found.

After two FBI agents interviewed the wounded guard a second time this afternoon, FBI officials said circumstances surrounding the shooting remain suspicious.

Doguim would not say if House had changed his story and declined to give specifics about why law enforcement officials are leaning further away from the possibility of terrorism.

"The circumstances are what is at question here," Doguim said. "It's those circumstances that now with time, as dust clears, that we're going to pick apart and examine."

Doguim said it is "reasonable to assume" a person who suffered such a traumatic injury could have some "inconsistencies" in his story.

"If we're still asking, I think you should reasonably assume that we're not completely comfortable yet that we have everything as clear as we would like to have it," Doguim said.

Bulletins describing the gunman's appearance and his pickup were issued to law enforcement agencies across the state.

Police dogs brought in by the U.S. Department of Energy searched the grounds and discovered a projectile that investigators believe is connected to the shooting, Freeport Police Chief Henrietta Gonzalez said.

She asked the public to remain calm as the investigation continues.

"We feel very confident we've done everything we can do at this time ... based on the very vague information that we have," Gonzalez said Saturday. "We ask them not to be alarmed. We're working along with other authorities that can help us out."

FBI agents spent the day in Freeport, a seaside town an hour south of Houston that has many petrochemical plants and complexes. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and U.S. Coast Guard also were notified.

BASF would not discuss what security measures they are taking in response to the scare, the first such incident to happen at a chemical plant in the Freeport area.

"We obviously are taking this very seriously," said BASF spokeswoman Sharon Rogers.

The shooting happened about 9:15 p.m. Friday as House, who is contracted by BASF to patrol its properties, was making his rounds and noticed a suspicious pickup parked on a dirt access road along the highway, about a half-mile from BASF's ammonia terminal, police said. The guard told investigators that truck had no front license plate and its rear license plate was obscured because the truck's tailgate was down.

When the security guard asked the driver what he was doing there, the driver said he "was taking pictures of lights," Gonzalez said.

When the guard turned to speak into a radio attached to his shoulder, the man in the pickup shot him in the right shoulder, Gonzalez said. The man in the truck then fled toward Texas 36, she said.

The security guard said the gunman -- who appeared to be alone in the truck -- was possibly of Pakistani or Middle Eastern descent and spoke with a very heavy accent in broken English, Gonzalez said. The gunman had a dark complexion, dark hair, a mustache and five o'clock shadow, House told police.

[HangThemHigh]

You might be correct on the meth angle, those guys are complete idiots.

A large storage facility as this would have anhydrous (not diluted with water like the household product) ammonia, also (a very large amount). The ammonia is stored under pressure to keep it liquid. If the tank were ruptured, the ammonia would escape the tank as a vapor, forming a large and noxious cloud. Just punching a hole (say from a bullet) wouldn't do very much, but a small to medium size explosive device could make a hole big enough to be a real problem for everyone downwind.

Crashing a car into the tank might be enough to break it open, a truck would have a better chance. But it would definitely be a suicide mission.

[Quix]

Logical.

I hope you're right!

[Dan Evans]

I'm not a chemist - does ammonia burn easily?

No, not easily.