Beltway Sniper Shootings-FR Commentary-Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2002 [Another Shooting?]

Fox News, CNN, Press Releases | October 22, 2002 | Fox News, CNN, Press Releases

[Peach]

Let's keep a live commentary thread gonig again today.

[bvw]

Yes, and generally such shut-down responses feed the murderous SOB's sense of control ... which is the fuel that drives him.

[stlnative]

Another possible reason why more than one shot may have been heard...

It is possible that if there was 2 bus drivers that one bus driver stays armed due to his type of work and maybe he shot off a round or 2 in the air or towards the woods to let the prep know he was going fight back if needed.

[steve-b]

Overnight news: The New York Post reports the shooter's 3 page letter left at the Ponderosa demands money in exchange for stopping the shootings.

OK -- if the sniper will give the police his bank account number, we'll not only give him the money he demands, we'll throw in a 15% cut of a slush fund belonging to the previous dictator of Nigeria.

(Sorry, but some situations just demand a bit of gallows humor.)

[getmeouttaPalmBeachCounty_FL]

All I have ever heard mentioned is that the composite is not clear enough. Makes me laugh though, about a "white box truck" or a "white van" having more clarity.

CNN-Sniper alert over French marksman
Tuesday, October 22, 2002 Posted: 8:49 AM EDT (1249 GMT)

The French deserter had been training at the Combined Armies Military School (Ecole militaire Inter-Armees) in Coetquidan in Brittany.

PARIS, Lyon -- France has alerted Interpol about a crack military marksman who is missing in North America, prompting speculation over a link to a sniper who has killed nine people and wounded three in the Washington area.

The killings, which have taken place mainly around shopping centres since October 2, have baffled U.S. police and spread fear among Americans living in the area...

http://www.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/europe/10/21/france.awol/

[per loin]

Too much has not been released to the public.

[Lion's Cub]

I wasn't implying that they should release the name. In fact, I don't believe they should release the names of any of the victims unless they die, and certainly none of the witnesses names.

We don't know enough to know what's really going here, and who knows if these people or their families might be specifically targeted later if the shooter thinks they might really have seen something that would help identify him?

[Catspaw]

According to a hospital spokesman, the victim is in surgery in critical condition. The scrawl on MSNBC says he's 40 years old.

[Letitring]

From Doctors, shooting victim in critical condition. I haven't heard if they have him in surgery yet, has anyone heard?

[livius]

Yes, certainly, that was how the Unabomber - who didn't even live with his family and strung his killings out over some time - was finally caught. And it's hard to imagine, that in the case of this sniper, no family member would notice something strange all of a sudden in his routines and habits.

Ping to other folks interested in this idea.

[getmeouttaPalmBeachCounty_FL]

I think you mentioned that yesterday. I'd like to hear from someone who knows this French marksman, whether he had a distinguishable accent of some sort.

[mystery-ak]

*Pay me or die*.....he's doing this for money....I just can't believe it.

[mhking]

If he got to the Beltway in 10 minutes, how far do you think he could have gotten in 20 more minutes?

If he got to the Beltway insidof ten minutes, at that time of the morning, heading westward, he couldn't have left Montgomery County. But heading eastward, he could have been well into PG County, out US 50, or even up I-95 toward Baltimore. In addition, Georgia Ave. and Connecticut Ave. southbound would have taken him into the District very quickly. The distance to the DC line from the Beltway at Georgia Avenue is not far at all. It would be an easy matter to go down Georgia or even cut over to 16th St., both of which are main north-south drags into DC.

Connecticut Ave. is also a main drag headed into town, but because it swings west of Rock Creek, the drive to I-495 and the DC line is longer than on Georgia Ave. My money is on Georgia Avenue.

[Catspaw]

Yes, he's in surgery. The hospital spokesman, a doctor, gave the time he arrived at the hospital (but I didn't catch it) and that he was immediately taken into surgery.

[stlnative]

If this keeps up, eventually we will hear about more than one shot being heard at a shooting site as people are probably arming themselves and somebody is going to start shooting back when they hear gun shots coming from a wooded areas.

[livius]

Random idea: perhaps the sniper knew perfectly what time the school buses normally set out on their morning routes.

[Letitring]

Oh, thank you. Victim arrived at 6:40am, taken immediately to surgery, still there in the operating room, in critical condition. Oh Dear Lord. His family has been notified and knows of his condition. 40 years old, as reported earlier.

[madison10]

I have the same question. They are now saying the tarot cards were left at every crime scene. The media was only able to leak the news once.

[Freedom2specul8]

Thank you for the update.

Fox news: NOTE WRITTEN IN BROKEN ENGLISH..First I heard of that too!

[Letitring]

10 am briefing from hospital.

[mystery-ak]

Fox reporting that a 3 page note was left at Ponderosa....and seems to have been written in broken English!