Gunman Opens Fire in Detroit-Area Office
Police Report One Dead, Two Wounded
By DAVID AGUILAR
AP
TROY, Mich. (April 9) - A man suspected of shooting three people, killing one, at an accounting firm where he was fired last week was arrested after a high-speed chase a few hours after the Monday morning attack, authorities said.
Police said they had located Anthony LaCalamita, 38, on Interstate 75, north of the suburban Detroit office building where the shootings took place.
Sheriff's deputies and state police chased him for 30 miles, including through a construction zone, at speeds up to 120 mph before he finally pulled over after about 15 minutes, Genesee County Sheriff Robert J. Pickell said.
"He probably realized if he didn't, he was going to be shot," Undersheriff James Gage said.
LaCalamita said nothing after officers surrounded him, Pickell said, describing the suspect as "subdued. Very, very, very subdued."
Officers found a 12-gauge pump-action shotgun and three live shells in the vehicle, Pickell said. Witnesses said the shooter used a shotgun or a rifle, Troy police Lt. Gerry Scherlinck said.
Some witnesses told police that when the shooter walked into the office on the building's second floor around 10 a.m. Monday, he looked as if he was trying to hide something, Troy Police Chief Charles Craft said.
Police couldn't say how many shots were fired.
"I'm not positive all three of the people were targeted, but there appeared to be some purpose," Craft said.
The families of the two wounded men requested "total privacy," and the hospital would not release any details about their conditions, Beaumont Hospital spokeswoman Ilene Wolfe said. She said the third victim died on the way to the hospital.
LaCalamita was listed among the professional staff on the Web site of Gordon Advisors, a public accounting and business consulting firm in the building. Calls to Gordon Advisors were not answered Monday afternoon, and a recording said the offices were closed.
The 170,000-square-foot building houses a number of businesses, including law offices and the accounting firm. Police at first told workers to stay in their offices but a short time later evacuated the building, about 15 miles north of Detroit.
Bill Adgate, who works at LPL Financial inside the building, said he had hunkered down inside the office for a couple of hours with furniture pushed up against the door. He said police told the group to stay put until officers allowed them to leave.
"It's tough. I want to get out," Adgate said by telephone.
Associated Press writers Ron Vample and Jeff Karoub contributed to this story from Detroit.
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