‘I cannot fathom why anyone would commit such a heinous act. This kind of senseless violence is unheard of here’
By Joe Kovacs
The suspected sniper believed to have intentionally set a blaze in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, on Sunday to ambush firefighters and police, killing at least two, is now identified as 20-year-old Wess Roley.
“We do believe that the suspect started the fire, and we do believe that it was an ambush and it was intentional,” Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris told reporters. “These firefighters did not have a chance.”
Ironically, there are indications Roley himself sought to be a firefighter.
“His grandfather, Dale Roley, told NBC News that ‘something must have snapped’ for his grandson to have committed such violence, particularly against firefighters,” the network reported.
“He actually really respected law enforcement,” Dale Roley said. “He loved firefighters. It didn’t make sense that he was shooting firefighters. Maybe he got rejected or something.”