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A police officer with his gun drawn runs for cover as Eulalio Tordil, 62, a suspect in three fatal shootings in the Washington, D.C., area is taken into custody nearby. Picture: Alex Brandon
A FEDERAL officer who had threatened to “commit suicide by cop†is alleged to have shot six people — killing his estranged wife — in a two-day shooting spree that left two others dead.
Eulalio Tordil, 62, a police officer with the US Department of Homeland Security, was arrested Friday afternoon and taken into custody after a massive police manhunt.
Authorities say Tordil’s shooting spree began on Thursday when he executed his estranged wife, Gladys Tordil, at High Point High School, in Beltsville, Maryland. Gladys taught chemistry at another school nearby.
Her daughters, Grace and Nikki, were students at High Point and their mother was picking them up when she was shot.
According to The Washington Post, Tordil had amassed a collection of deadly arsenal, including a .40-caliber hand gun, a .45-caliber hand gun, an M-4, a revolver and a “hunting gunâ€.
Authorities said Tordil followed his 44-year-old wife Gladys to their children’s high school in Prince George’s County, Maryland, and killed her as she waited in an SUV at approximately 4:40pm.
Members of the Montgomery County police collect evidence at the scene of a shooting in the parking lot of the Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda, Maryland. Picture: Nichols KammSource:AFP
Eulalio Tordil, employee of the Federal Protective Service. Picture: Prince George's County Police DepartmentSource:AFP
When a bystander tried to intervene in an argument between the pair, Tordil shot and wounded the man before pointing his handgun at his wife and shooting her multiple times.
Documents show Ms Tordil had previously told authorities he threatened to harm her if she left him.
Tordil escaped and on Friday, as cops hunted for suspects, three more people were shot — one fatally — in a parking lot at Westfield Montgomery Mall in affluent Bethesda, Maryland at around 11:00am.
Tordil allegedly targeted one person before firing on two others that came to help, said Montgomery County Assistant Police Chief Darryl McSwain.
One unidentified man was killed, another was critically injured and a woman suffered “non-life-threatening injuriesâ€.
About half an hour later, a woman was fatally gunned down outside the Aspen Hill Shopping Center in Silver Spring, some 13km away.
The car of Eulalio Tordil is towed away in Silver Spring. Picture: Alex BrandonSource:AP
A set of leg cuffs is passed to another officer as Eulalio Tordil is taken into custody. Picture: Alex BrandonSource:AP
Tordil was arrested outside a mall across the street from where the woman was shot three hours later.
Police spotted the suspect’s car in a parking lot and began showing his wanted flyer to business nearby. Positive IDs lead police to the mall.
Tordil had stopped off for coffee at Dunkin’ Donuts, before “browsing around†in a craft store and dining at Boston Market.
“I can’t believe he killed all these people and then just goes and gets something to eat afterwards like he was just out shopping,†Danyel Roark, a manager at the Papa John pizza shop near the Boston Market, told the Washington Post.
“Who does that?â€
Police had “no reason to believe the victims knew the suspect,†McSwain said.
Police take Eulalio Tordil into custody. Picture: Alex BrandonSource:AP
According to a protective order obtained by The Washington Post, Gladys Tordil said Eulalio Tordil once slapped her so hard that her glasses broke on her face.
In the protective order, Gladys Tordil said Eulalio, an employee of the Federal Protective Service which provides security at federal properties, subjected their children to “intense-military-like discipline,†like push-ups and detention in a dark closet.
The Federal Protective Service says Tordil was put on administrative duties in March after the protective order was issued. He was subsequently placed on administrative leave.
The Washington Post cites two law enforcement officials who said Tordil told colleagues he planned to die from “suicide by copâ€.
Tordil had allegedly written a suicide note asking for forgiveness and apologising to his “brothers in blueâ€.
Tordil was known to carry a handgun, police said.
Tordil was on leave, having surrendered his gun and badge, after his wife obtained a protective order to keep him away, an official with the service said.
If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault or family violence, call 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) or visit www.1800RESPECT.org.au. In an emergency, call 000.