Disgruntled gunman shot two people at Radio Shack
Posted: Fri Nov 19, 2004 11:43 am
Mall shooter kills 2, self
Friday, November 19, 2004 Posted: 7:42 AM EST (1242 GMT)
ST. PETERSBURG, Florida (AP) -- A gunman fatally shot two people and wounded a third inside a Radio Shack store at a strip mall Thursday night, then shot himself to death, police said.
Another customer and an employee managed to escape uninjured from the store at the Gateway Shopping Center, police spokesman Bill Proffitt said.
Police did not identify the gunman, but police spokesman George Kajtsa said the man "had some mental issues, according to his family."
"He was involved in some kind of a road rage incident today that the Pinellas County Sheriff's Department is investigating," Kajtsa said. He had no other details, other than that the incident occurred well before the evening shootings.
Proffitt said investigators did not know the gunman's motive or whether he knew his victims. The Tampa Tribune previously reported that the gunman was a former Radio Shack employee, but Proffitt could not confirm that.
Shopper Kenneth Powell, 23, and store worker Joanna Cruz, 19, died at a nearby hospital, athorities said. Employee James Dolan, 30, remained in surgery late Thursday for what Kajtsa called "severe" injuries.
Powell "just made it to the store, pretty much in the wrong place at the wrong time," Kevis Murphy, who identified himself as the shopper's uncle, told WTVT-TV of Tampa. "The Lord has his way of doing things and he'll work it out somehow."
Police would not identify the type of gun used.
The store is located between a department store and a supermarket, and the shopping center -- which houses several stores -- was essentially shut down because of the police investigation, Proffitt said.
Friday, November 19, 2004 Posted: 7:42 AM EST (1242 GMT)
ST. PETERSBURG, Florida (AP) -- A gunman fatally shot two people and wounded a third inside a Radio Shack store at a strip mall Thursday night, then shot himself to death, police said.
Another customer and an employee managed to escape uninjured from the store at the Gateway Shopping Center, police spokesman Bill Proffitt said.
Police did not identify the gunman, but police spokesman George Kajtsa said the man "had some mental issues, according to his family."
"He was involved in some kind of a road rage incident today that the Pinellas County Sheriff's Department is investigating," Kajtsa said. He had no other details, other than that the incident occurred well before the evening shootings.
Proffitt said investigators did not know the gunman's motive or whether he knew his victims. The Tampa Tribune previously reported that the gunman was a former Radio Shack employee, but Proffitt could not confirm that.
Shopper Kenneth Powell, 23, and store worker Joanna Cruz, 19, died at a nearby hospital, athorities said. Employee James Dolan, 30, remained in surgery late Thursday for what Kajtsa called "severe" injuries.
Powell "just made it to the store, pretty much in the wrong place at the wrong time," Kevis Murphy, who identified himself as the shopper's uncle, told WTVT-TV of Tampa. "The Lord has his way of doing things and he'll work it out somehow."
Police would not identify the type of gun used.
The store is located between a department store and a supermarket, and the shopping center -- which houses several stores -- was essentially shut down because of the police investigation, Proffitt said.
