UPDATE 11:49 a.m.: LIVE PRESS CONFERENCE: FBI agent says shooter “had contact with law enforcement” in the past but there was no investigation into him before yesterday.
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UPDATE 11:48 a.m.: LIVE PRESS CONFERENCE: ATF official says the weapon, which was purchased legally, was a “9mm handgun utilizing multiple ammunition magazines.”
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The “person of interest” at the scene of the shooting. The FBI wants to talk to him.
UPDATE 11:38 a.m.: LIVE PRESS CONFERENCE: FBI agent holds up a photo of a white man — a person of interest — who showed up at the scene after the shooting. The FBI is asking for any information about him, while assuring that there was only one shooter.
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UPDATE 11:35 a.m.:
Names of the murder victims:
– Seeta Singh, 41, male
– Ranjit Singh, 49, male
– Satwant Singh Kaleka, 62, male, the president of the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin
– Parkash Singh , 39, male
– Parmjit Kaur, 41, female
– Subegh Singh, 84, male.
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UPDATE 11:24 a.m.: LIVE PRESS CONFERENCE: U.S. Attorney James L. Santelle speaks. There was only one shooter involved, “although our investigation to that end continues.”
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Edwards: Not aware of any animosity toward Sikh community, and department had no previous interaction with Wade Michael Page.
— Oak Creek Patch (@OakCreekPatch) August 6, 2012
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UPDATE 11:18 a.m.: LIVE PRESS CONFERENCE: Wounded officer is Lt. Brian Murphy, 51. He is in critical condition and recovering with his family.
Wade Michael Page.
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UPDATE 11:16 a.m.: LIVE PRESS CONFERENCE: Oak Creek Police Chief John Edwards speaks: Police received the first call at 10:29 a.m. First officer on scene “came upon a victim, went to render aid.” The officer was ambushed by the suspect, shot 8-9 times at “very close range” with a handgun. Other officers didn’t realize he was down until after they exchanged fire with the suspect and killed him. When they realized he needed assistance, the injured officer heroically “waved them off and told them to go into the temple” to help other victims.
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UPDATE 10:50 a.m.: Reuters reports Page was demoted from sergeant to specialist after for being drunk on duty in June 1998.
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UPDATE: 9:55 a.m.: Via Southern Poverty Law Center: Page in 2010 was lead singer of the band End Apathy and gave an interview to Label 56, a white-supremacist website:
Page told the website that he had been a part of the white power music scene since 2000, when he left his native Colorado on a motorcycle. He attended white power concerts in Georgia, North Carolina, West Virginia and Colorado. At various times, he said, he also played in the hate rock bands Youngland (2001-2003), Celtic Warrior, Radikahl, Max Resist, Intimidation One, Aggressive Force and Blue Eyed Devils.
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The gunman behind yesterday’s massacre that killed six victims plus the shooter at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin has been identified as 40-year-old Army veteran Wade Michael Page.
CBS reports on Page’s military history, including time in “psychological operations” and a tainted discharge:
Page enlisted in April 1992 and given a less-than-honorable discharge in October 1998. He served at Fort Bliss, Texas, in the psychological operations unit in 1994, and was last stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, attached to the psychological operations unit.
Psychological operations specialists work on methods to influence foreign populations, AP reported.
Investigators witheld his identity until this morning, but some details emerged yesterday. He was described as having numerous tattoos (including a 9/11 theme) that led to authorities’ labeling of the incident as “domestic terrorism.” One report said he had apparent ties to white supremacists. And his landlord’s mom said he had recently broken up with his girlfriend.
Page was killed by police in a shootout after his assault on the temple in the Milwaukee suburb of Oak Creek. Worshippers were powerless to defend themselves, and many cowered in closets while dialing for help.
Fox reports that temple president Satwant Kaleka, who was among the victims, “attempted to tackle the suspect as he sprayed gunfire inside the temple.”
There is no clear motive, but authorities suspect a hate crime targeting the Sikhs, who are often mistaken for Muslims.