NEWSFLASH: Another shooting, approx. 9 AM, this time near Fredericksburg

The Free Lance-Star ^ | now | Jim Lakely

[seamus]

I work in a newsroom in Fredericksburg, and they heard on the police scanner that a person has been shot at a gas station at "Four Mile Fork" which is a neighborhood just south of the City of Fredericksburg.

No details yet, but I wanted to let y'all know -- and keep up the tradition of FReepers getting news first.

Pray for the victim, and pray that this is a random shooting, and that this monster's terror has not widened yet again.

[lizma]

Good pickup. My yahooing got me no where.

Police are asking anyone on the road who sees something suspicious call #77.

[tomkat]

nope, a deal's a deal !
cold bear it is, all around      

[relee]

There are lots of buildings in that area.

[Alberta's Child]

The shootings began several days before the "bin Laden" message was aired.

[AmericanInTokyo]

Prince Georges County (if not Charles County). Will have to check. (response to your question as to where Waldorf MD is)

[McGruff]

Boy you think you've had a bad day at work.

Fri Oct 11, 1:30 PM ET

Police stop white vans outside Woodbridge, near the Massaponax, Virginia gas station where a man was gunned down, the latest in a spree of random shootings, October 11, 2002. An elusive sniper armed with a high-powered rifle has killed eight people and injured two others in the past 10 days, breeding anxiety in the normally tranquil suburbs encircling the U.S. capital. Each person was hit with a single bullet fired in busy public places. None of the victims appeared to know each other but ballistics evidence has connected the crimes. REUTERS/Mike Theiler

[ClancyJ]

What does a terrorist want with his vile acts? Attention that he is a terrorist and is attacking America.

Why give him that attention? Why play his game? I agree don't empower him with the word terrorist - instead use radical, crime or whatever. We all know the potential for terrorism - we are not dumb.

I feel they are doing the little they can in controlling his plan - we don't allow him the power of what he wants - us screaming "terrorist, terrorist - we are under attack!!!!!"

Then he has to do something else to get the attention - and we nab him.

[OReilly]

Let me counter that with: multiple shooters in multiple white trucks/minivans, using the same type weapon/ammo.

THat is possible and quite true with the exception that this morning's roadblock (30 miles wide in capture area)was almost as fast as is possible. The cop working the traffic accident was 50 yards away. HE went to the scene and must have been in touch with the dispatcher almost immediately.

THe shooter must know that they were thinking about a really big road block. Why would the shooter be driving a white van and wait for a cop to be 50 yards away.

[relee]

TV 5

Paul Wagner – reporting from the scene via telephone – police dogs found some type of material in a ditch, like a paper, and the dogs followed the scent to the Ramada hotel.

[Squantos]

Yeah nothing to see here now.......I think I'm going to the range and plink a few down range myself. My holiday started early. Hey WD where ya been Bro ??

Stay Safe Ya'll !!

[Eroteme]

Good thought in #1209.

The shooter could just have easily picked off the police officer. But he didn't. This is, imho, significant.

It could be, as you note, the target was chosen specifically because it was under Mr. Policeman's nose. Which suggests that the shooter is in a personal competition with police. He doesn't want to kill Mr. Policeman. He wants to beat him.

Or--maybe the shooter is following a very specific set of rules on the kills. Is this a scavenger hunt of some sort? Only civilians on the shopping list (so far.) So are these self-imposed rules of the game, or does the shooter not have the authority to alter the game plan, even when a (presumably) higher-scoring kill presents itself?

Which brings me to the question: In what game do civilian kills score highest? Terrorism.

[marshmallow]

OK. Thanks for that.

Looks like I owe everyone a beer......

[Capt_Hank]

I keep telling people..... They are trying to force feed us "Geraldo The Fake". He has bombed in every location, but he keeps surfacing.

[ClancyJ]

"That guy was found and he was part of a surveying team preparing for some new construction in the area."

Thanks! FreeRepublic - the best interactive newsite around!

[AmericanInTokyo]

Interesting viewpoint

[Freedom2specul8]

I thought the white truck was released because he was just a frantic driver trying to get away! Did something change while I was gone?

[swarthyguy]

Don't be so quick. The msg may have been bouncing around on jihadi arabic sites before.....

I'll still take a beer, though.....

[skip2myloo]

Or, outright denials of terrorism.

That Egyptian who burst into LAX and killed some Jews at the El Al counter was just a routine malcontent.

And Mir Aimal Kasi (who is on death row in Virginia, scheduled to be executed nexth month), the Pakistani who killed two people in front of CIA HQ in 1993, and then fled to Afghanistan was just another disgruntled immigrant.

And, Timothy McVeigh acted alone in OKC.

No, these were NOT acts of terrorism -- our government told us so.

[relee]

TV 5 -

This Exxon station has an ‘On the Run’ store in it (like a mini-mart). There were customers in the store during the shooting.

There’s an unconfirmed story that the shooting victim may have had a passenger with him.

[Freedom2specul8]

Thanks for the update..