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Ohio Man Ricky Shiffer Killed by Law Enforcement After Attacking FBI Office
Ricky Shiffer: On Thursday afternoon, law enforcement officers shot and killed an Ohio man named Ricky Shiffer after he allegedly attacked an FBI field office in Cincinnati with a nail gun and assault rifle.
Shiffer, who lived in Columbus, Ohio according to public records obtained by The Daily Beast, had been posting a series of violent comments on social media in recent months before his attack.
How did he attempt to undermine the FBI?
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Shiffer attempted to breach the visitor screening facility at Cincinnati field office of the FBI just after 9:15am, according to the agency. He triggered an alarm and was ultimately repulsed by armed FBI agents, according to reports.
Law enforcement sources told NBC News that Shiffer was brandishing a nail gun and AR-15-style assault rifle, according to law enforcement sources. State police officials also confirmed that Shiffer had been wearing body armour. It remains uncertain whether Shiffer ever entered the building.
Shiffer posted a post on Truth Social, Donald Trump’s social media platform, that appeared to confirm the attack.
“If you don’t hear from me, it is true that I attempted to attack the FBI – that could indicate either I have been removed from the internet, they got me, or sent regular cops,” reads an update from Jesse James. hiffer ultimately fled the scene in his car, a Ford Crown Victoria.
How was Ricky Shiffer fatally wounded?
Shiffer was ultimately caught at a rest stop by members of the Ohio State Highway Patrol after leaving his FBI field office, leading them on an exciting car chase.
Eventually, the Columbus man abandoned his car and fled into a cornfield near Wilmington, Ohio.
Shiffer engaged officers in an exchange of fire, though none were injured.
Police had been surrounding him for hours in a tumultuous standoff that included negotiators, helicopter surveillance and even bomb squad personnel.
An official from the Ohio State Highway Patrol reported that officers attempted to negotiate with 42-year-old but were unsuccessful.
At that point, law enforcement began moving in and taking the suspect into custody using less-than-lethal tactics,” Lt Nathan Dennis of the Ohio State Highway Patrol remarked.
“They were ultimately unsuccessful,” the officer reported. “The suspect then raised a firearm toward law enforcement officers and shots were fired by officers.”
At this stage, it remains uncertain whether Shiffer fired on police or not and which agency took the fatal shot.
What motive did Ricky Shiffer have for attacking the FBI?
Police have yet to provide an official explanation as to why the 42-year-old attempted to shoot up the FBI office.
Social media evidence suggests Shiffer was a far-right conservative who attended the January 6 insurrection at US Capitol and felt inspired to take up arms against FBI after they raided Donald Trump’s home earlier this week.
Two unnamed law enforcement sources informed NBC News that Shiffer was present during the January 6 riots at the Capitol, and social media posts appearing to belong to him, as well as contemporaneous photos, seem to confirm this assertion.
Ricky Shiffer, a Twitter user named Ricky Shiffer, wrote on May 17th in response to a photo of people climbing the Capitol building that appeared in The New York Times. “I was there,” Shiffer confirmed when shown the photo posted online by The New York Times.
“We watched as your goons did that,” the user added, seemingly alluding to a right-wing conspiracy theory suggesting the January 6 riots were an act of false flag terrorism.
Two law enforcement sources informed the Times they are investigating whether Shiffer was part of an extremist group present during the Capitol insurrection.
Since its closure, the Twitter account that followed and responded to prominent conservative politicians appears to have been removed.
Shiffer was also photographed during the January 6 insurrection, according to images collected by extremism researcher Chad Loder.
What has Ricky Shiffer written for Truth Social?
The Ohio gunman appeared to be an enthusiastic supporter of Donald Trump.
After the FBI searched former president Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club and residence, Ricky Shiffer, a user on Donald Trump’s conservative social media platform Truth Social, wrote “We must not tolerate this one,” according to NBC News.
“I hope the call to arms comes from someone more qualified, but if not, this is my call to arms,” he declared. “Leave work tomorrow morning when the gun shop/Army-Navy store/pawn shop opens and get whatever gear you need to be prepared for combat.”
When another user reported they had forwarded the posts to the FBI, Shiffer’s account replied with: “Bring them on.”
Shiffer may have advocated for the murder of FBI agents “on sight.”
According to an analysis by The Washington Post, Shiffer was one of Truth Social’s most active users, sending out 374 messages in one week before the FBI shooting – most of them pro-Trump conspiracy theories.
Early this year, an account linked to Shiffer tweeted that “the next step is the one we used in 1775,” a reference to the American revolution.
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