Police Identify Suspect In McKinney Shooting
Shooter Identified As Patrick Gray Sharp
Compiled From Staff ReportsMcKINNEY (CBS/AP) ―
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- McKinney Police Chief Doug Kowalski said that 29-year-old Patrick Gray Sharp is the person who set his parked truck on fire and then began shooting at the McKinney Public Safety Building.
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Police said that Sharp may have been trying to draw people out of the building to then blow up a trailer loaded with explosives. Kowalski said that Sharp fired more than 100 rounds before he died.
"He had a plan," Kowalski told CBS 11 News. "He was activating his plan and he was heavily armed. It looked like he knew just what he wanted to do."
During a morning news conference, McKinney Police Deputy Chief Scott Brewer confirmed that, around 9:00 a.m. Tuesday, a man driving a Ford F-150 truck drove up on south side of the Public Safety Building pulling a trailer. The building houses both the McKinney Police and Fire Departments.
Immediately after Sharp exited the vehicle, it became engulfed in flames. Police believe that there was ammunition inside the pickup. "Subsequently, the fire itself set off that ammunition, causing rounds to be dispersed in the immediate area," explained Brewer.
Sharp, wearing a military-style vest, began yelling something toward the building as he opened fire. Officers in and outside of the building began searching for Sharp before exchanging gunfire.
Many people in the area heard the noise, but were unaware of what was taking place. "I heard helicopters and fire trucks, but at the time I wasn't sure what was going on," said nearby resident Becky Mose, whose home is only a few hundred yards from where Sharp was found.
Sharp was heavily armed when he was found. He had an assault rifle and two other guns.
"We don't know, at this time, what his motives were, how in-depth his thoughts were. But I assure you, we intend to find that out through a thorough investigation," Brewer said. "We're just grateful that none of our personnel were injured."
Matt Payne and his family were driving by the building when they saw smoke. Payne grabbed his cell phone and began capturing video. "It's a very scary thing to think I was 30 to 50 feet from a man with a gun shooting at, what appeared to be, random people."
Sharp was a resident of Anna and, less than an hour after the shooting, Collin County Sheriff's Deputies were waiting outside of his rural home. Deputies had to wait for a search warrant before going inside.
The Plano Bomb Squad and McKinney Police Department were at the house by late afternoon. After searching the home for just under two hours, they left around 7:00 p.m. Tuesday night. There has been no word on any explosives being removed from Sharp's home, but nearly a dozen guns were taken by police as evidence.
Neighbors said that Sharp was a gun hobbyist, and was known to celebrate holidays by firing his gun into the air from his yard. "I know he was shooting on Christmas," said neighbor Zeppy Benavides. "He would shoot on Christmas and on the Fourth of July."
Sharp died near the Collin County Community College's Central Park Campus, putting more than 300 students and staffers at some risk.
In response to the gunshots, the campus was placed on lockdown. Students and staff were made aware of the shooting when the college sent a text alert message that read: "CougarAlert: Shots fired @ Central Park Campus. Campus on lockdown. Cops on scene."
Those on campus heard an emergency alert from speaker systems in every building. "Immediately, once the gunfire, all the information went over the voice-over IP protocol. It's like a personalized alarm system," explained Collin County Community College President Cary Israel.
There were no injuries on the campus. Classes were not in session, but people were on campus for school registration.
Chopper 11 shot video over the scene showing the burned out pickup truck, with an attached trailer loaded with a material with a soil-like consistency. Police said that the trailer contained wood chips, road flares, gasoline and ammonium nitrate. It failed to ignite.
Sharp's roommate, Eric McClellan, told The Associated Press by phone that he was on vacation outside of Texas when he received calls from state troopers and his stepfather, telling him what happened.
McClellan said he was "still in shock," and that there was nothing about Sharp that would lead anyone to believe that he would try to attack police. "He was fine and dandy when I left Texas two days ago. And, all of a sudden, I get a phone call," McClellan said. "There's nothing I can say. He was a great guy, a good friend."
McClellan said that he was questioned about Sharp by police and could not provide them with much information.
McClellan said that he and Sharp kept guns in their residence because they like sports shooting. "We're Texans," he said. "We have the right to bear arms."
McClellan said that he was doing contract work for building wire manufacturer Encore Wire Corp. six years ago when he met Sharp, who was an employee of the company. They had been roommates for four years, he said.
Sharp now worked part-time at Powell Tree and Plant Farm, a landscaping business in Anna. The business is owned by Bobby Cox, McClellan's stepfather. Cox told CBS 11 News that Sharp was a nice, "quiet" person. "He was an angel. He was just a great guy. He was like a son to us," said Cox. "He was an excellent worker, and I would often get phone calls from customers praising Patrick's work that he had done in their yards."
Cox said that he was surprised by the shooting. "He was probably one of the nicest men I've ever known. I can't remember him saying anything or gave any indication that he would harm anybody."
McKinney police said that, at no point, did Sharp ever enter the Public Safety Building.
There were some teachers and staff at several McKinney Independent School District facilities located near the Public Safety Building, but no students. Still, one facility, Vega Elementary School, was placed on lockdown for about 30 minutes.
The Collin County Sheriff's Department, Department of Public Safety, Texas Rangers, Collin College Campus Police, Plano Bomb Squad, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and FBI are all assisting with the on-going investigation.
