Home Law Enforcement Texas dad may have stopped mass shooting by warning cops about son, police say

Texas dad may have stopped mass shooting by warning cops about son, police say

0
Texas dad may have stopped mass shooting by warning cops about son, police say

Police in Fort Worth, Texas, say a mass shooting may have been averted Tuesday after a man alerted authorities to say his 27-year-old son wanted to buy weapons and go on a rampage.

“He wanted to kill many people. He wanted to do something that was very similar that took place in the Midland-Odessa area [Aug. 31] and he basically wanted to mimic that,” Forth Worth Police Officer Buddy Calzada told KXAS-TV.

A police officer in Fort Worth, Texas, was "in very serious condition" after a shootout with robbery suspects early Friday, police said.

A police officer in Fort Worth, Texas, was “in very serious condition” after a shootout with robbery suspects early Friday, police said.
(Facebook)

Police said they were familiar with the man and had received calls about him due to his mental health issues before. When the man’s father called, he told authorities his son was out attempting to buy weapons, and the father worried he might try to carry out a mass shooting.

TEXAS FISHERMAN REELS IN SEMI-AUTOMATIC RIFLE ON LAKE

Police say the man had withdrawn a large amount of cash from his bank account and tried to buy guns legally, but was turned down because he failed a background check.

“Kudos to those businesses that followed the law,” Officer Landon Rollins with the Crisis Intervention team told reporters, according to The Fort Worth Star-Telegram. The man then attempted to buy a gun off the street, “which we all know is very accessible… you can get it done,” said Rollins.

The father gave authorities general directions where his son might be headed. The crisis team quickly caught up with the man, who Rollins said: “he was not living in reality.”

MOM’S RAW POST ON CHILDHOOD CANCER GOES VIRAL: ‘IT AFFECTS THE ENTIRE FAMILY’ 

“He believed I was trying to kill him right then and there with my mind,” Rollins added. “When he was detained and we interviewed him he had a very flat affect and said, point-blank, and I asked him what he wanted to do with these weapons and he said just “I want to kill people.”

Rollins said the man had not been taking his prescribed medications and not meeting with his doctor. He is currently in a mental health clinic receiving treatment.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Police applauded the man’s father for speaking up.

“He was extraordinarily worried and he feared a mass casualty incident,” Rollins told KXAS. “That takes so much courage to be able to do that on your own family and to reach out to law enforcement for that.”

Read more