PDA

Bekijk Volledige Versie : Sniper.......



mulan
24-10-02, 10:17
Sniper probe issues warrant, message
Police to sniper: 'We have an answer for you'
Thursday, October 24, 2002 Posted: 2:49 AM EDT (0649 GMT)


ROCKVILLE, Maryland (CNN) -- Authorities investigating the Washington-area sniper shootings said Wednesday night a federal arrest warrant had been issued for a man who may have knowledge about the case.

The warrant, for federal firearms violations, names John Allen Muhammad, 42, also known as John Allen Williams.

Montgomery County Police Chief Charles Moose, whose department is leading the investigation, told a news conference that Muhammad should be considered armed and dangerous and may be traveling with a juvenile, his stepson.

The sniper has killed 10 people and wounded three since October 2.

Moose emphasized the arrest warrant "is not related to the recent shootings being investigated by the Montgomery County task force." But he did say "Mr. Muhammad may have information material to our investigation."

He described Muhammad as a black male, about 6 feet 1 inches tall, weighing about 180 pounds.

Muhammad is the stepfather of 17-year-old Jamaican national, John Lee Malvo, who is believed to be traveling with him, law enforcement sources said.

The two are believed to be driving a blue and burgundy 1990 Chevrolet Caprice with a New Jersey license plate NDA-21Z. Authorities in the D.C. metropolitan region have issued a lookout for the vehicle, law enforcement sources told CNN.

After the October 3 shooting of Pascal Charlot, 72, in Washington, D.C., law enforcement officials searched for a burgundy Chevrolet Caprice. One such car was later found burned out in the D.C. area, but it was never determined if it had anything to do with the fatal shooting.

Military officials told CNN that Muhammad is an Army veteran of the Persian Gulf War. He was not sniper trained and was not in the Special Forces but served in conventional Army units, the officials said.

Moose also issued a new plea to the letter writer authorities believe is the sniper, asking the person to contact the task force directly -- either by phone or at a post office box.

"You have indicated that you want us to do and say certain things. You asked us to say, 'We have caught the sniper like a duck in a noose.'

"We understand that hearing us say this is important to you. However, we want you to know how difficult it has been to understand what you want because you have chosen to use only notes, indirect messages, and calls to other jurisdictions," Moose said.

Moose also told the suspect that "we have an answer for you about your option. We're waiting for you to contact us."

bman
24-10-02, 11:24
net weer 2 arrestaties...die ene mohamed en een kereltje van 17...(BBC-world)

Simon
24-10-02, 12:23
Former Soldier Detained in Sniper Case

By Petula Dvorak, Christian Davenport and Sari Horwitz
Washington Post Staff Writers
Thursday, October 24, 2002; 6:02 AM

A man who authorities were seeking in connection with the deadly sniper shootings in the Washington area was arrested without incident this morning in Frederick County, Maryland, law enforcement officials said.

Shortly before midnight, Montgomery County Police Chief Charles A. Moose announced that police wanted to question John Allen Muhammad, a former Army soldier once known as John Allen Williams. Moose said Muhammed had been linked to the case in a telephone communication last week from a man who police believe is the sniper, but he emphasized that Muhammad may not be directly involved in the shootings.

Hours later, Muhammad and a teenager were found sleeping at a rest stop off Interstate 70 in Frederick County, about 10 miles west of the city of Frederick and 60 miles northwest of Washington, D.C., a source said.

During a pre-dawn briefing Maj. Greg Shipley of Maryland State Police said that a motorist at the rest stop near the town of Myersville noticed the car, a Chevrolet Caprice, with two men sleeping inside. Last night, police had put out a bulletin for a blue 1990 Caprice with the New Jersey license plate NDA21Z. Shipley would not confirm the identities of the two men taken into custody, simply describing them as black males, one about 40 and the other about 20.

No charges have been filed against the two men, who are being transferred to Montgomery County for questioning. A federal search warrant also is expected to be executed on the car that the two apparently had been traveling in, Shipley said this morning. Shipley said that a Maryland state trooper responded to the motorist's call shortly after 1 a.m. After verifying the tag number, the sniper task force was contacted and a "joint tactical response team" responded to the area. The men were taken into custody about 3:30 a.m.

"What a break," a source said. But, the source cautioned, police were hoping that a search of the car would turn up key evidence.

"Let's hope there's something in the trunk," the source said. "We still need to find out that key piece of evidence." The developments were the latest in a frenzy of activity over the last 12 hours which included a televised press briefing just before midnight in which Moose uttered a phrase mandated by the sniper: "We have caught the sniper like a duck in a noose."

During that same briefing Moose said: "We believe that Mr. Muhammad may have information material to our investigation."

Moose described Muhammad, 41, as "armed and dangerous" and said he was wanted on a federal firearms charge. But Moose added "a strong word of caution: Do not assume from this allegation that John Allen Muhammad . . . is involved in any of the shootings we are investigating."

The developments occurred on a day when the fatal shooting of a Montgomery County bus driver was ballistically linked to the sniper responsible for nine other killings in the Washington area. As children were shepherded to school by fearful parents yesterday, details emerged of a second letter in which the sniper threatened to harm children.

Police sources said yesterday that in one of a flurry of contacts – including phone calls and two letters that made references to "we" and "us" – the sniper made a number of demands for money and at least one curious request. Moose responded with a direct statement last night.

"We understand that you communicated with us by calling several different locations," Moose said. "Our inability to talk has been a concern for us, as it has been for you. You have indicated that you want us to do and say certain things. You asked us to say, 'We have caught the sniper like a duck in a noose.'

"We understand that hearing us say this is important to you. However, we want you to know how difficult it has been to understand what you want because you have chosen to use only notes, indirect messages and calls to other jurisdictions."

The duck reference apparently is drawn from a folk tale in which a boastful rabbit tries to catch a duck in a noose. The duck appears to be caught but flies off, dragging the rabbit along with him. The rabbit then tumbles into a tree stump, where he is stranded.

Moose declined to answer reporters' questions last night.

Police had put out a bulletin for a 1990 Blue Chevrolet Caprice with the New Jersey license plate NDA21Z, which is registered to John Muhammad at an address in Camden, across the Delaware River from Philadelphia.

"We're keeping our fingers crossed," a senior FBI official said. "This is several steps forward, and it's stronger than the others we've been looking at."

The manhunt last night was the culmination of an unlikely sequence of events that began last week with a call to police, sources said. One source said the call came from a man believed to be the sniper, who claimed that he had committed a robbery and slaying in the South.

That admission – in a conversation during which the man demanded to be taken seriously – led police to an Alabama robbery, which in turn led them to a Tacoma, Wash., man.

"People feel good about this lead because it is the first time that the sniper tied himself to a specific event where a suspect has been identified," a police source said.

Tomas
24-10-02, 17:24
Op ww.cnn.com staat al een foto van de gearresteerde man.

Hij ziet er helemaal niet gevaarlijk uit.

Maar net zoals Venlo incident nu opeens van zinloosgeweld naar rassenhaat neigt, hebben ze daar nu ook zoiets ben ik bang voor.

Donna
24-10-02, 18:02
Two arrested in sniper shootings
Report: Rifle, scope, tripod recovered from vehicle


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Story Tools




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

MIDDLETOWN, Maryland (CNN) --Members of the sniper task force converged on a freeway rest stop before dawn Thursday and arrested an ex-soldier and his stepson. Sources told CNN the two were considered suspects in the shootings that have killed 10 and wounded three in the Washington area.

Sources identified the two as John Allen Muhammad, 42, also known as John Allen Williams, a Gulf War veteran named in a federal arrest warrant for firearms violations who was being sought as a material witness in the sniper case, and his 17-year-old stepson John Lee Malvo, a Jamaican citizen.

Washington radio station WTOP reported that a rifle, a scope and a tripod had been recovered from their vehicle.

Sniper investigators were looking into a possible connection to a fatal shooting at a liquor store in Montgomery, Alabama. Montgomery Police Chief John Wilson said Thursday that there were "some very good similarities" between Malvo and a composite sketch of the attacker in the September 21 shooting.

Authorities said Thursday they had made a match between a fingerprint lifted from the scene and Malvo. But Wilson said the weapon used in the Montgomery shooting is not the same one -- a .223-caliber rifle -- used in the shootings in Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. (Full story)

The Baltimore Sun reported that authorities were tipped to the Alabama connection by a recent phone call believed to be from the sniper, who said that investigators should "take him seriously" and "check with the people in Montgomery," or words to that effect.

Muhammad and Malvo are being questioned in Montgomery County, Maryland, where the string of deadly shootings began three weeks ago, and where the most recent victim linked to the sniper was killed Tuesday. (Trail of the sniper)

Muhammad and Malvo were sleeping in a blue 1990 Chevrolet Caprice, which a motorist and attendant recognized as matching the description of a vehicle authorities were looking for -- a blue or burgundy 1990 Chevrolet Caprice with New Jersey license plate NDA 21Z.

"We didn't actually see any police officers for a while, until they actually stormed the parking lot where the vehicle was," said rest stop attendant Larry Blank. "There were helicopters, police cars everywhere."

The rest area is along a seven-mile stretch of Interstate 70 near Myersville, Maryland, that had been shut down in a dragnet launched just a few hours earlier by Montgomery County Police Chief Charles Moose, the head of the sniper task force.

"This is such a shock," Sheila Tezando, Muhammad's sister-in-law, told CNN. She said there was nothing in their demeanor that would lead her to believe that they were capable of any violent act.

President Bush was told Thursday morning that law enforcement officials are confident the arrests of Muhammad and Malvo represent a significant breakthrough, a senior administration official said. "It is an ongoing situation, but he was told they are optimistic they have cracked this," the official said.

Other developments
•A source said the U.S. Marshals Service was able to connect Muhammad with the car and license plate through information filed by officers from an October 8 traffic stop in Baltimore, Maryland. Muhammad was sleeping in his car at the time. The officers were concerned that his driver's license was from Washington state and the vehicle tag was from New Jersey.

•Authorities searched a duplex in Tacoma, Washington on Wednesday and left with a tree trunk apparently used for target practice. Sources said Muhammad once served at Fort Lewis, not far from the duplex. (Full story)

•Military officials told CNN Muhammad was not trained as a sniper and was not in the Special Forces, but had expertise in combat support missions.

•North of Tacoma near the Canadian border, the mayor of Bellingham, Washington said the FBI and local police had searched Bellingham High School, where Malvo reportedly attended school last year.

•The FBI is denying earlier reports that it conducted searches related to the sniper investigation in Marion, Alabama. Local police had said the search centered on a site called "Ground Zero USA" which specializes in special weapons and tactical training. "We have not searched Ground Zero," said Tim Munson, the special agent in charge of the FBI field office in Mobile, Alabama. "We have no interest."

•At a midnight news conference Wednesday, Moose delivered another message to the sniper, urging him to contact police.

"You have indicated that you want us to do and say certain things. You asked us to say, 'We have caught the sniper like a duck in a noose.' We understand that hearing us say this is important to you," Moose said. (Full message)

•After the October 3 shooting of Pascal Charlot, 72, in Washington, D.C., law enforcement officials searched for a burgundy Chevrolet Caprice. One such car was later found burned out in the D.C. area, but it was never determined whether it had anything to do with the fatal shooting.

CNN Correspondents Jeanne Meserve, Kelli Arena, Gary Tuchman and Barbara Starr, and Producer Kevin Bohn contributed to this report.

Zelfkritiek
24-10-02, 18:43
Geplaatst door Tomas
Op ww.cnn.com staat al een foto van de gearresteerde man.

Hij ziet er helemaal niet gevaarlijk uit.

Maar net zoals Venlo incident nu opeens van zinloosgeweld naar rassenhaat neigt, hebben ze daar nu ook zoiets ben ik bang voor.


Venlo incident = Rassenhaat??
Had die Marokkaan echt zo'n hekel aan het blanke ras?