Pension fight sparked shooting
Source: Agencies |
January 6, 2010, Wednesday
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Print Edition
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A GUNMAN who opened fire with a shotgun at a United States federal building on Monday, killing one security guard and wounding a US marshal before he was shot to death, was upset over losing a lawsuit over his federal pension benefits, law enforcement officials told The Associated Press.
The two officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case, said 66-year-old Johnny Lee Wicks opened fire with a shotgun at a security checkpoint, touching off a gunbattle with deputy US marshals.
Although the investigation is continuing, the officials said preliminary evidence pointed to Wicks' anger over his benefits case as the motive for the shooting.
Authorities also were investigating the cause of a fire that damaged Wicks' modest one-bedroom apartment in a 90-unit seniors complex 5?kilometers northwest of the scene of the shooting.
"There was a fire at his apartment this morning," FBI Special Agent Joseph Dickey said as investigators pieced together a motive for the shooting and retraced Wicks' steps.
Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who was in Las Vegas but not at his local office in the building, said one of his aides bent down to pick up some newspapers in the atrium when the shooting began. "She believes her life was saved as a result of picking up those papers," Reid said.
The US Marshals Service said the victims included a 48-year-old deputy US marshal who was hospitalized and Stanley Cooper, a 65-year-old contract court security officer.
In a handwritten lawsuit filed in March 2008, Wicks complained that his Social Security benefits were cut following his move to Las Vegas, and accused federal workers of discriminating against him because he is black.
"This case from the start was about race," Wicks wrote. "Lots of state worker(s) and agencies have took part in this scam mainly for old blacks who are not well educated."
Wicks claimed the problem began in California, after he had a stroke and was unable to go to government offices to protest an earlier benefits reduction.
The case was dismissed on September 9 by US District Court Judge Philip Pro in Las Vegas following a hearing before federal Magistrate Judge George Foley Jr. Both judges have courtrooms in the federal building.
The two officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case, said 66-year-old Johnny Lee Wicks opened fire with a shotgun at a security checkpoint, touching off a gunbattle with deputy US marshals.
Although the investigation is continuing, the officials said preliminary evidence pointed to Wicks' anger over his benefits case as the motive for the shooting.
Authorities also were investigating the cause of a fire that damaged Wicks' modest one-bedroom apartment in a 90-unit seniors complex 5?kilometers northwest of the scene of the shooting.
"There was a fire at his apartment this morning," FBI Special Agent Joseph Dickey said as investigators pieced together a motive for the shooting and retraced Wicks' steps.
Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who was in Las Vegas but not at his local office in the building, said one of his aides bent down to pick up some newspapers in the atrium when the shooting began. "She believes her life was saved as a result of picking up those papers," Reid said.
The US Marshals Service said the victims included a 48-year-old deputy US marshal who was hospitalized and Stanley Cooper, a 65-year-old contract court security officer.
In a handwritten lawsuit filed in March 2008, Wicks complained that his Social Security benefits were cut following his move to Las Vegas, and accused federal workers of discriminating against him because he is black.
"This case from the start was about race," Wicks wrote. "Lots of state worker(s) and agencies have took part in this scam mainly for old blacks who are not well educated."
Wicks claimed the problem began in California, after he had a stroke and was unable to go to government offices to protest an earlier benefits reduction.
The case was dismissed on September 9 by US District Court Judge Philip Pro in Las Vegas following a hearing before federal Magistrate Judge George Foley Jr. Both judges have courtrooms in the federal building.
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