Texas church gunman was shot by hero plumber Stephen Willeford...before 100mph car chase (tr)

Evening Standard (UK) ^ | November 6, 2017 | BENEDICT MOORE-BRIDGER David Gardner

[ETL]

Full title:

Revealed: how Texas church gunman was shot by hero plumber Stephen Willeford and another passer-by before 100mph car chase

BENEDICT MOORE-BRIDGER David Gardner

Stephen Willeford, 55, grabbed his own rifle and rushed to confront Devin Kelley after being told an attack was underway by his daughter.

As he arrived outside the church he came face-to-face with Kelley.

Mr Willeford, a plumber with no military experience, shot him in the side through a gap in his body armour, forcing the killer to flee.

Mr Willeford and another passing resident, Johnnie Langedorff, then chased him at almost 100 miles per hour in a car as the wounded killer tried to make a getaway after taking a hostage.

Kelley is said to have killed 26 people – including a child aged five – when he stormed into the church on Sunday dressed in black tactical gear and armed with an assault rifle.

Freeman Martin, regional director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, said: “The suspect dropped his rifle, which was a Ruger AR assault-type rifle, and fled from the church. The man then chased the gunman.”

Mr Langedorff said: “He got a little bit of a jump on us. So we were doing about 95 miles per hour, going around traffic and everything.

“He just lost control and that’s whenever I put the vehicle in park. The other gentleman jumped out and had his rifle drawn on him and he didn’t move after that.”

Kelley was found a short distance away in his crashed vehicle, dead from a bullet wound. He had several more guns in his car, but the hostage was unhurt.

Police are still trying to establish whether Kelley died from Mr Willeford’s shot, or if he committed suicide.

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Speaking at a news conference in Japan, Mr Trump said: “Fortunately somebody else had a gun that was shooting in the opposite direction, otherwise it would have been – as bad as it was – it would have been much worse.”

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He [mass murderer Devin Kelley] served in logistics readiness at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico, and was jailed for one year in 2012 on two counts alleging assault on his wife Danielle Shields and their child.

In 2014, he was kicked out of the military.

Old school friends described Kelley, who lived in nearby New Braunfels, Texas, as a “creep” who made no secret of his anti-religious views.

Nina Rose Nava, who went to school with Kelley, said: “He was always talking about how people who believe in God were stupid and trying to preach his atheism.’

On Kelley’s Facebook page, he appeared to have a fascination with guns. He had recently shared a photo of an AR-15 style gun with the caption: ‘She’s a bad b***h.”

Kelley’s mother-in-law, Michelle Shields, is understood to be a parishioner at the First Baptist Church and was friends on social media with First Baptist Pastor Frank Pomeroy and his wife.

[ETL]

"Kelley was found a short distance away in his crashed vehicle, dead from a bullet wound. He had several more guns in his car, but the hostage was unhurt."

Hostage? First I heard of that.

[ETL]

How heroic locals exchanged gunfire with Texas shooter, ran him off the road as he tried to flee and shot him dead

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Texas Department of Public Safety Regional Director Freeman Martin said that the neighbor, who has not yet been named, had 'grabbed his rifle and engaged the suspect.'.

Martin said that during the gunfight, Kelley dropped his Ruger assault rifle and got back in his SUV to flee the scene.

But another local resident, Johnnie Langendorff, who had witnessed the confrontation refused to let the shooter get away. Both he and the unnamed neighbor jumped in his truck and gave chase.

In a Facebook post, Langendorff's girlfriend Summer Caddel described how the pair had 'jumped in my boyfriend's truck and they chased that sick b*****d down in pursuit until the cops could catch up. He was able to run the shooter off of the road on 539!'

Langendorff told KSAT 12 that he'd been speeding at 95mph, while on the phone to dispatch, while the neighbor kept his rifle trained on the gunman's car.

As they approached a sharp curve in the road, near the 307 and 539, he said Kelley appeared to lose control and his car swerved off the road.

'That's when I put the truck in park,' he said. 'The other gentleman jumped out, and had his rifle on him. He didn't move after that.'

Caddel added that Kelley was gunned down within a few feet from her boyfriend.

Martin confirmed that police had found Kelley dead, saying that: 'We are not sure if it was self inflicted or if he was shot by a local resident.'

Cops also found multiple weapons and possible explosives in the vehicle.

(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...

Johnnie Langendorff and Summer Caddel

[ETL]

“Old school friends described Kelley, who lived in nearby New Braunfels, Texas, as a “creep” who made no secret of his anti-religious views.

Nina Rose Nava, who went to school with Kelley, said: “He was always talking about how people who believe in God were stupid and trying to preach his atheism.’...”

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Hero Stephen Willeford, 55

[Morpheus2009]

I half feel the awful urge to say that they should have given the shooter’s corpse extra bullets to make sure...

[Sacajaweau]

I questioned the hostage bit, too??

[Flick Lives]

Mr Willeford, a plumber with no military experience, shot him in the side through a gap in his body armour, forcing the killer to flee.

This monster Devin Kelley didn't just "snap" or go off his meds, he planned this atrocity to kill as many people as possible.

[marktwain]

I have heard of the hostage on another source as well.

Looks like there was one.

No ID at this time.

The hostage may have worthwhile information.

[Lisbon1940]

Are you suggesting the shooter and the plumber are related?

[loucon]

I wonder why no American press is mentioning a hostage? Just two UK new sources.

[Sacajaweau]

Some people are good at making split second decisions...this guy and his drive deserve a medal.

[mewzilla]

American press is not exactly bruiting about the fact that a civilian good guy with a gun is responsible for plugging the perp.

[gaijin]

I think police are great, but you know what..?

they had absolutely no role in stopping this mass murderer.

they basically showed up and did the paperwork after it was all done.

[ETL]

This might have something to do with a possible motive...

“The Texas church madman was a disgraced Air Force veteran who was court-marshaled in 2012 after assaulting his wife and child, reports said.

Devin Patrick Kelley, who joined the military in 2010,was given a dishonorable discharge and slapped with 12 months of confinement in 2014 after his court marshaling, CBS News reported.

The military said Sunday that Kelly served in Logistics Readiness at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico from 2010 until his discharge.

The Pentagon also confirmed that Kelley was an airman “at one point,” but did not provide additional details.

Kelly was married and lived in a wooded area on the rural, western outskirts of New Braunfels, north of San Antonio.

His mother-in-law has a post-office box in Sutherland Springs, where he launched his massacre, about 50 minutes away.”

http://nypost.com/2017/11/05/texas-church-shooter-was-a-dishonorably-discharged-air-force-veteran/
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"Kelley’s mother-in-law, Michelle Shields, is understood to be a parishioner at the First Baptist Church and was friends on social media with First Baptist Pastor Frank Pomeroy and his wife."

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/world/revealed-how-texas-church-gunman-was-shot-dead-by-hero-plumber-stephen-willeford-a3677181.html

[Mr. K]

well don’t say that...that would be awful

[Mr. K]

well don’t say that...that would be awful

[ETL]

Are you suggesting the shooter and the plumber are related?

How the heck did you come to do that strange conclusion?

[loucon]

American press is not exactly bruiting about the fact that a civilian good guy with a gun is responsible for plugging the perp.

Noticed that too.

[Labyrinthos]

There are posts on another thread that reference two shooters. Maybe the hostage wasn’t a hostage.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3602006/posts (see post no. 63)

[FreedomPoster]

I said the same thing, presented by Trump in the White House, and a Lefty lawyer type went off on me on how chasing the guy down was probably illegal.

I really hope that comes to pass.