The man who fatally shot a Texas cop as he sat in his patrol car writing a traffic ticket was arrested Monday, authorities said — revealing that the suspect had staked out police headquarters hours before the murder.
Otis Tyrone McKane, 31, was caught near a highway overpass in the San Antonio area.
He had been seen at San Antonio police headquarters at about 7:45 a.m. Sunday, four hours before he shot Detective Benjamin Marconi, 50, authorities said.
Surveillance footage showed McKane pacing in front of the building before entering, asking a clerk a question and leaving without getting an answer, authorities said.
“I think the uniform was the target,” said San Antonio Police Chief William McManus.
“I don’t know why he was in headquarters — we have some ideas,” McManus added, noting that no cops were inside at the time.
Marconi pulled a driver over Sunday. Moments later, a man — who authorities believe was McKane — pulled up in a black Mitsubishi Galant behind the 20-year police veteran’s cruiser and shot him twice.
The driver whom Marconi had pulled over was questioned and released.
Marconi was one of four officers shot in four different cities within 12 hours Sunday.
A 46-year-old St. Louis police sergeant was hospitalized in critical condition after he was shot twice in the face while he sat in traffic in a marked police car.
“This officer was driving down the road and was ambushed by an individual who pointed a gun at him from inside of his car and shot out the police officer’s window,” Police Chief Sam Dotson said. “Fortunately, for the blessing of God, the officer’s going to survive.”
Dotson said the cop is a 20-year veteran and a married father of three.
The suspect, George Bush III, 19, was tracked down early Monday in the neighborhood where the shooting happened. As cops converged, he shot at another police car, missing both occupants.
Officers returned fire, killing Bush, who had been wanted in connection with a spate of crimes.
“[The sergeant] was targeted because he was a police officer,” St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay said.
Two other cops were shot Sunday night, but it wasn’t immediately clear whether they were directly targeted. Police have not said if race played a part in any of the four shootings.
A passing motorist shot a Sanibel, Fla., cop in the shoulder as he was writing a ticket. Police later wounded the suspect, Jon Hay, 49, and charged him with attempted homicide, the Wall Street Journal reported. The officer was treated at a hospital and released.
A Gladstone, Mo., cop was wounded by a man who was killed in a struggle after a traffic stop.
Marconi’s death brings the total number of US cops killed this year to 128, up from 109 at the same time last year, according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.
With wires