After an hours-long standoff that shut down an interstate and disrupted rural life, police shot and killed a man they said was trying to break into FBI offices in Cincinnati, Ohio, on Thursday. The man, wearing body armor, tried to break through the entrance to the visitor complex
A man who tried to break into the FBI offices was shot dead by police in Cincinnati, a city in the southwestern state of Ohio. Authorities refused to confirm the man’s name or describe his motives. But two law enforcement officials familiar with the matter told The New York Times. ‘ that investigators are looking into whether the man, whom they identified as Ricky Shaffer, has ties to extremist groups, including one that participated in the January 6 attack on the Capitol.
Shooting suspect Ricky Fisher
The Ohio incident came three days after FBI agents searched Trump’s home, and a day after the FBI director told reporters that online threats against federal law enforcement are “unfortunate and dangerous.”
Officials said the man, wearing body armor, tried to break through the entrance to the visitor complex outside the FBI’s Cincinnati office in the Kenwood suburb around 9 a.m. Thursday, FBI spokesman Todd Lindgren said.
After officers arrived the man fled, the man headed north on Interstate 71, about 20 minutes later he was spotted by an officer, the officer began a chase and was met with gunfire, the chase wound along country roads, ending near the Interstate 71 bridge near the city of Wilmington.
Officers attempted to negotiate with the man, then attempted to subdue him with non-fatal gunfire. These efforts failed. The man eventually pointed a gun at them and the officers opened fire and fatally wounded him.
Federal investigators said they were looking into Schieffer’s social media accounts. On Tuesday, a Trump Truth Social social media account was discovered by a user named Ricky Schieffer who posted a message encouraging people to go to Florida, “That’s where Mar a Lago is, and I recommend going there, and if agents try prevent you, so kill them.”
Then on Thursday morning a message appeared: “If you don’t hear from me, it’s true that I tried to attack the FBI.” But The New York Times could not immediately confirm whether the account, or other social media accounts under the name Ricky Schieffer, actually belonged to the same Schieffer who was shot to death.