The Psycho Sniper has revealed the depths of his sick mind in a chilling threat made in a letter to cops:
“Your children are not safe anywhere, at any time.”
The killer scrawled the terrifying warning as a postscript at the end of the three-page note he left Saturday night.
Police Chief Charles Moose of Montgomery County, Md., revealed the hate-filled words yesterday – after another life, the 10th in three weeks, was taken in a sniper attack in the Washington, D.C., area.
In his letter, the sniper raged that he had tried to get through to cops on their tipster hot line six times – but was “ignored” by “incompetent” operators who hung up, The Washington Post reported.
“Five people had to die” because of that, said the letter, which even named some of the operators who offended him.
A law-enforcement official acknowledged that at least one FBI trainee “did not understand the importance of what was happening” as she took the call.
“She pretty much blew him off,” the source said.
The sniper was “extremely angry” when he called, snarling such phrases as “Just shut up and listen,” “I am God,” and “I’m in charge,” another source said.
The killer’s lethal rage flared again at 6 a.m. yesterday, marking the beginning of a day of fast-moving developments that culminated with another cryptic TV message from Moose to the madman.
Here’s how the day unfolded.
* At 6 a.m., Montgomery County bus driver Conrad Johnson was standing on the top step inside his empty, idling bus in residential Aspen Hill when a single bullet was shot at him from a wooded area across the street.
He died an hour later.
“It was the worst liver injury I’ve ever seen,” surgeon James Robey said.
* At a midday press briefing, Moose refused to discuss the letter from the sniper, which was found in woods behind the Ponderosa steakhouse in Ashland, Va., where the killer had critically wounded a departing diner.
In the letter, the sniper demanded $10 million, threatening there would be “body bags” if authorities did not comply, The Washington Post said.
Moose balked at confirming reports that the letter also included a specific threat against children.
But because of the feared threat, school officials in and around Ashland canceled classes. And parents and officials in other areas where the sniper has struck were enraged, demanding to know if there had been such a threat.
Despite the threat against kids, most Washington-area schools were expected to open today.
Moose said the killer or killers “have shown a clear willingness and ability to kill people of all ages, all races, all genders, all professions, at different times, different days and at different locations.”
The sniper has shot and injured one child, a 13-year-old boy.
* A few hours later, Moose bowed to mounting public pressure and revealed the terrifying postscript in the sniper’s letter: “Your children are not safe anywhere, at any time.”
The chief also disclosed that there had been another communication from the sniper – but would not elaborate.
Moose did have a message for the killer: “We will be responding soon.”
* At a 7:20 p.m. briefing, Moose delivered the promised response:
“We have researched the options you stated and found that it is not possible electronically to comply in the manner that you requested. However, we remain open and ready to talk to you about the options you have mentioned.”
Moose said the sniper is seeking an 800 number to talk with authorities, and the chief offered to set up a private post-office box “or another secure method.”
“You indicated that this is about more than violence,” he said. “We are waiting to hear from you.”
The latest attack – the 13th in the coldblooded rampage – took place on the sniper’s original stalking ground, in Montgomery County. It’s where the first shot in the three-week murder spree crashed through the plate-glass window of a Michael’s craft store Oct. 2.
Five lives were taken during the next 28 hours. Two of those attacks were in Aspen Hill.
Police sources said they believe the sniper felt compelled to go after a 13th victim either because cops had failed to comply with deadlines set in his Saturday letter or because of the highly publicized ambush set up to nab him in Richmond, Va., on Monday.
They also feel he intentionally targeted a Montgomery County employee to show his anger at the way his attempts to negotiate with cops had faltered.
They said he returned to Aspen Hill to kill because he knew the bus and driver would be there at 6 a.m.
“He’s back in his comfort zone,” said one cop, adding that if the sniper doesn’t live in the area, he has intimate knowledge of it.
Investigators added they no longer believe the sniper speeds away from the murder after each hit. They said he may just drive a few miles away, and then calmly pull over to take a nap in his car or have a snack at a fast-food restaurant.
This new theory is based on the phone call the sniper made to the task-force tip line after his Saturday-night attack. The call – made from a pay phone at a gas station just a short distance from the Ponderosa restaurant – led cops to his three-page note.
Johnson, the latest sniper victim, was a son of Jamaican immigrants. He enjoyed spending afternoons tossing a football around with his two young boys, friends said.
“He was a real family man,” neighbor Steve Addison said.
Additional Reporting by Joe McGurk and Kate Sheehy
“We have researched the options you stated and found that it is not possible electronically to comply in the manner that you requested However, we remain open and ready to talk to you about the options you have mentioned . . . You indicated that this is about more than violence. We are waiting to hear from you.”
Police Chief Charles Moose last night