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Iowa Police Arrest Suspect in ‘Ambush’ Killings of 2 Officers Iowa Police Arrest Suspect in ‘Ambush’ Killings of 2 Officers
(35 minutes later)
Two police officers were shot and killed early Wednesday while sitting in their patrol cars in the Des Moines area, and the authorities later arrested a 46-year-old Iowa man in connection with the “ambush-style attacks.” Two police officers were shot and killed early Wednesday while sitting in their patrol cars in the Des Moines area, and the authorities later arrested a 46-year-old Iowa man, who had a history of confrontations with the police, in connection with the “ambush-style attacks.”
The man, identified as Scott Michael Greene, of Urbandale, Iowa, was taken into custody in Dallas County, just west of Des Moines, said Sgt. Paul Parizek, a spokesman for the Des Moines Police Department. The man, identified as Scott Michael Greene, surrendered and was taken into custody in Dallas County, just west of Des Moines, said Sgt. Paul Parizek, a spokesman for the Des Moines Police Department.
Mr. Greene was on foot when he was arrested by the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office and the Iowa State Patrol, and he offered no resistance, the authorities said. He will be taken back to Des Moines, they said. “There’s nothing to indicate right now that there’s anybody else involved,” Sergeant Parizek said.
Officials did not explain how investigators had identified Mr. Greene as a possible suspect, but said that he had already been familiar to the police. “Most of our officers have some understanding of Mr. Greene,” Ross McCarty, the Urbandale police chief, said at a news conference. He did not elaborate. Officials did not explain how investigators had identified Mr. Greene, of Urbandale, Iowa, as a suspect, but said he had already been familiar to the police. “Most of our officers have some understanding of Mr. Greene,” Ross McCarty, the Urbandale police chief, said at a news conference. He did not elaborate.
The two officers who were killed, in separate attacks a few miles apart, were identified as Officer Justin Martin of the Urbandale police, and Sgt. Anthony Beminio of the Des Moines police. Both were apparently caught by surprise and had no chance to defend themselves or return fire. The two officers who were killed, in separate attacks a few miles apart, were identified as Officer Justin Martin of the Urbandale police and Sgt. Anthony Beminio of the Des Moines police. Both men were apparently caught by surprise and had no chance to defend themselves or return fire, the authorities said.
Chief McCarty said that in the shooting of Officer Martin, it appeared that the gunman walked up to the side of the patrol car and fired “over 15 and under 30” rounds, and that many .223-caliber shell casings were found at the scene. Officials said that they had not yet recovered the weapon, and that there may have been more than one. Sergeant Beminio was a veteran officer with a wife and children, while Officer Martin, who was in his mid-20s, became an officer just last year, officials said.
Mr. Greene had had some confrontations with the police in the recent past, as well as minor criminal convictions, but Sergrant Parizek, a spokesman for the Des Moines Police Department, said that the authorities did not yet know of any motive for the shooting, and that “we may never actually know what motivated this act.” Chief McCarty said that in the shooting of Officer Martin, it appeared that the gunman had walked up to the side of the patrol car and fired “over 15 and under 30” rounds. Many .223-caliber shell casings were found, but officials said that they had not yet recovered the weapon and that there might have been more than one.
Just a few weeks ago, Urbandale police escorted Mr. Greene from an Urbandale High School football game, Chief McCarty said, after he waved a Confederate flag in front of black students, and others in the crowd complained that he was creating a disturbance. The chief said that Mr. Greene, whose daughter attends the high school, was given a trespass warning, and “was working out with the school officials what are the parameters of when he could be on the school grounds and when he could not.” Mr. Greene had some confrontations with the police in the recent past, as well as minor criminal convictions, but Sergeant Parizek said the authorities did not yet know of the motive for the shootings. “We may never actually know what motivated this act,” he said.
The first fatal shooting Wednesday, of Officer Martin, occurred at the intersection where that football field is found, a few blocks from the house where Mr. Greene lives. Just a few weeks ago, Urbandale police officers escorted Mr. Greene from an Urbandale High School football game, Chief McCarty said, after he waved a Confederate flag in front of black students and others in the crowd complained that he was creating a disturbance. Mr. Greene, whose daughter attends the high school, was given a trespass warning, the police said. “He was working out with the school officials what are the parameters of when he could be on the school grounds and when he could not,” Chief McCarty said.
A video, apparently shot by Mr. Greene and posted on Oct. 16 to a YouTube account in his name, shows the latter part of that confrontation, in which an officer refers to the man recording the scene as Scott Greene. The first shooting Wednesday, of Officer Martin, occurred at the intersection where that football field is found, a few blocks from the house where Mr. Greene lives.
In the video, the man is angry, saying that while he was at the game, someone hit him and took away the Confederate flag. Throughout the 10-minute video, the officers tell the man he is being accused of trespassing and causing a disturbance, and that he is no longer permitted on the grounds. A video, apparently shot by Mr. Greene and posted on Oct. 16 to a YouTube account in his name, appears to shows the latter part of the high school confrontation; on it, an officer can be heard referring to the man making the recording as Mr. Greene.
He repeatedly demands that officers return his flag and file assault and robbery charges against “the African-American people that were behind me.” In the video, the man sounds angry and says someone hit him and took his Confederate flag. The officers can be heard telling him that he is being accused of trespassing and causing a disturbance, and that he is no longer permitted on the grounds.
“I was peacefully protesting,” he said, and asked officers dozens of times what crime he had committed. The man repeatedly demands that officers return his flag and file assault and robbery charges against “the African-American people that were behind me.”
The shootings Wednesday began just after 1 a.m. The police in Urbandale, a suburb of Des Moines, responding to reports of gunfire, arrived near the intersection of 70th Street and Aurora Avenue, where they found Officer Martin who had been shot. “I was peacefully protesting,” he says, asking the officers dozens of times what crime he had committed.
Officers from Des Moines, Iowa’s largest city, and other agencies were called in for help. Around 1:30 a.m., Sergent Beminio was found shot at the intersection of Merle Hay Road and Sheridan Avenue in Des Moines — about a five-minute drive from where the first officer was found. In April 2014, Mr. Greene was arrested and charged with interference with official acts, accused of resisting an Urbandale officer’s attempt to pat him down for weapons. The complaint described him as combative, but did not say why the officer had wanted to search him.
Two days later, Mr. Greene was arrested again and charged with harassment, after reportedly threatening a man and using a racial slur against him.
He pleaded guilty to misdemeanors in both cases, and was fined and given probation. A judge ordered Mr. Greene to have no further contact with the man he harassed, and to undergo a psychiatric evaluation. In May 2016, fees he owed to Polk County related to those two cases were referred for debt collection.
Mr. Greene was arrested on an assault charge in 2001, but the charges in that incident were dropped.
Chief McCarty said Mr. Green had been back in court on Tuesday, though he was unsure of the details. “His mother and him had a disagreement over something — I’m not sure if it’s a civil case or criminal,” the chief said.
Mr. Greene served in the military in either Iraq or Afghanistan, according to Tim Tinkle, a neighbor, who described a series of personal hardships Mr. Greene went through, including the death of his father in 2010. “His wife left him” and “his kids got separated from him,” Mr. Tinkle said.
Another neighbor, Patti Draughn, said her husband, Larry, fished with Mr. Greene occasionally, and she described him as a “loner” and “a sad man.” He “kind of had a lot of sorrows in his life,” she said.
Mr. Greene lived in a one-story beige house a few minutes’ drive from the high school. The house is listed in public records as belonging to his mother, Patricia Ann Greene, who posted bail for him after the 2014 arrests.
Early Wednesday morning, neighbors in the quiet Urbandale neighborhood, where many people do not bother to lock their doors, woke up Wednesday to the sight of a SWAT team surrounding the home.
The shootings Wednesday began just after 1 a.m. The police in Urbandale, a suburb of Des Moines, responding to reports of gunfire, arrived near the intersection of 70th Street and Aurora Avenue, where they found Officer Martin.
Officers from Des Moines, Iowa’s largest city, and other agencies were called in for help. Around 1:30 a.m., Sergeant Beminio was found shot at the intersection of Merle Hay Road and Sheridan Avenue in Des Moines — about a five-minute drive from where the first officer was found.
“The shootings appear to have been ambush-style attacks,” the Urbandale police said in a statement.“The shootings appear to have been ambush-style attacks,” the Urbandale police said in a statement.
Sergeant Parizek said that it did not look as if there had been any interaction between the officers and “whoever the coward is who shot them while they sat in their cars.” “It doesn’t look like there was an exchange of conversation; there definitely wasn’t an opportunity for these officers to defend themselves,” Sergeant Parizek said.
Later on Wednesday morning, on a gravel road along Interstate 80 in Dallas County, Mr. Greene flagged down a passing employee of the state Department of Natural Resources, showed his identification and told the employee to call 911, the sergeant said. Sheriff’s deputies and state troopers responded, found him unarmed, and took him into custody without incident.
“He did complain of some kind of flare-up of an existing medical condition, and he’s been taken to the hospital,” Sergeant Parizek said.
Some schools near the shooting were closed, and the Clinton campaign said it had canceled a get-out-the-vote event scheduled for the city that was to be attended by former President Bill Clinton and Tim Kaine, the vice-presidential candidate.Some schools near the shooting were closed, and the Clinton campaign said it had canceled a get-out-the-vote event scheduled for the city that was to be attended by former President Bill Clinton and Tim Kaine, the vice-presidential candidate.
Near the scene of the first shooting, Dorothy Grandon, 60, said that just after 1:00 in the morning, she heard what she thought could have been multiple gun shots, and her dog started barking. “By the time I got the dog quieted down, I picked up my phone and it said 1:09,” she said. Near the scene of the first shooting, Dorothy Grandon, 60, said that just after 1 a.m., she heard what she thought could have been multiple gun shots, and her dog started barking. “By the time I got the dog quieted down, I picked up my phone and it said 1:09,” she said.
She did not hear anything else, and soon fell back asleep. She did not get up again until 4 a.m., she said, when she saw flashing lights and a police car with its door open. Later, watching the news, she recognized that car as the one in which the police officer had been shot. It was still sitting there, when she left for work at about 7:45.She did not hear anything else, and soon fell back asleep. She did not get up again until 4 a.m., she said, when she saw flashing lights and a police car with its door open. Later, watching the news, she recognized that car as the one in which the police officer had been shot. It was still sitting there, when she left for work at about 7:45.
According to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, killings of officers have risen in the United States this year, and the organization has noted with alarm an increase in “ambush killings” of officers.According to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, killings of officers have risen in the United States this year, and the organization has noted with alarm an increase in “ambush killings” of officers.
A report released by the organization in late July noted that there had already been 14 “ambush killings of unsuspecting law enforcement officers” in 2016, compared with three in the same time period the previous year.A report released by the organization in late July noted that there had already been 14 “ambush killings of unsuspecting law enforcement officers” in 2016, compared with three in the same time period the previous year.
On July 7, five police officers were gunned down in Dallas by Micah X. Johnson, an Army veteran who was angered at police treatment of African-Americans. Ten days later, three officers were shot and killed in Baton Rouge, La., by Gavin Long, who had a history of paranoid rantings.On July 7, five police officers were gunned down in Dallas by Micah X. Johnson, an Army veteran who was angered at police treatment of African-Americans. Ten days later, three officers were shot and killed in Baton Rouge, La., by Gavin Long, who had a history of paranoid rantings.
The killings in Iowa also recalled the ambush-style killings of police officers in Brooklyn in December 2014, when two police officers sitting in a patrol car were shot at point-blank range.The killings in Iowa also recalled the ambush-style killings of police officers in Brooklyn in December 2014, when two police officers sitting in a patrol car were shot at point-blank range.
Sergeant Parizek, asked about the dangers that face police officers, responded: “There is clearly a danger if you’re a police officer. These guys were gunned down, sitting in their car doing nothing wrong.” He added: “There is a clear and present danger to police officers right now.”Sergeant Parizek, asked about the dangers that face police officers, responded: “There is clearly a danger if you’re a police officer. These guys were gunned down, sitting in their car doing nothing wrong.” He added: “There is a clear and present danger to police officers right now.”
He alluded to the tensions in police-community relations throughout the country.He alluded to the tensions in police-community relations throughout the country.
“We’re very well aware of the society that we’re living in right now and the time,” he said. “And that there are some not-so-positive views of law enforcement that a segment of our population holds.”“We’re very well aware of the society that we’re living in right now and the time,” he said. “And that there are some not-so-positive views of law enforcement that a segment of our population holds.”
“If we don’t provide the service in the area that we do, with the personal-type service that we do, we’re nothing more than an occupying army,” he said.“If we don’t provide the service in the area that we do, with the personal-type service that we do, we’re nothing more than an occupying army,” he said.
Sergeant Parizek said, “We’re going to do what we can to keep ourselves safe” adding that the police would continue to “answer the call” as expected.Sergeant Parizek said, “We’re going to do what we can to keep ourselves safe” adding that the police would continue to “answer the call” as expected.
He said Des Moines police officers would temporarily conduct their patrols in pairs, to afford better protection.He said Des Moines police officers would temporarily conduct their patrols in pairs, to afford better protection.
Gov. Terry E. Branstad and Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds released a joint statement, sending thoughts and prayers to the families of the officers who were killed and those “who continue to put themselves in harm’s way.”Gov. Terry E. Branstad and Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds released a joint statement, sending thoughts and prayers to the families of the officers who were killed and those “who continue to put themselves in harm’s way.”
“An attack on public safety officers is an attack on the public safety of all Iowans,” the statement said. “We call on Iowans to support our law enforcement officials in bringing this suspect to justice.”“An attack on public safety officers is an attack on the public safety of all Iowans,” the statement said. “We call on Iowans to support our law enforcement officials in bringing this suspect to justice.”
The killings appeared to be the first times Des Moines police officers were shot and killed in the line of duty since 1977. The department of 376 officers had been mourning the deaths of two officers who were killed in March when their patrol car was struck head-on by a drunken driver who was going the wrong direction on Interstate 80.The killings appeared to be the first times Des Moines police officers were shot and killed in the line of duty since 1977. The department of 376 officers had been mourning the deaths of two officers who were killed in March when their patrol car was struck head-on by a drunken driver who was going the wrong direction on Interstate 80.