Texas Gunman Likely Motivated by Antigovernment Beliefs
A gunman displaying violent “antigovernment behavior” fired more than 100 rounds yesterday at the U.S. Courthouse, the Mexican consulate and a police headquarters in Austin, Texas, before dying of a gunshot wound, authorities say.
Hours after the shooting, various media sources identified the gunman as, Larry Steve McQuilliams, a 49-year-old resident of Austin. No one else was injured in 12-minute shooting spree which began about 2:20 a.m. (CST) and briefly shut down Interstate 35 through downtown Austin.
The suspect, who was wearing a vest, died from a gunshot near police headquarters and close to his vehicle that police suspected may have contained an explosive device, Assistant Chief Raul Munguia told the Austin Statesman. A police SWAT team later searched the gunman’s Austin home, but the results of that search weren’t immediately released.
The gunman initially fired gunshots at the federal courthouse, then moved on to the nearby Mexican consulate before heading to police headquarters, firing more than 100 rounds in total at the buildings which are in close proximity, the Washington Post reported.
Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo described the gunman’s actions as “violent anti-everything behavior, anti-government behavior if you will,” the newspaper reported. The chief speculated that the current “heated” political discourse on immigration issues “might have fed into some of this.”
The suspect attempted to ignite small fuel canisters while firing at the Mexican consulate, but there was no significant fire or explosion. The type of firearm he used wasn’t immediately described by police but there were reports it was an assault-rifle of some type.
It wasn’t immediately clear if the suspect died from a self-inflicted gunshot or one fired by an Austin police officer stabling horses used by the department’s mounted patrols. That officer was holding the reins of two horses in one hand when he spotted the suspect near police headquarters and took a “one-hand shot” at the suspect, according the media accounts.
McQuilliams was arrested in 1992 in Austin for aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon, but the case was dismissed, ABC News reported.
On his Facebook page, there were indications McQuilliams had worked as a bodyguard for a troupe of belly dancers and may have been involved in re-enactments as part of renaissance fairs.
