Waukesha Police Chief Daniel Thompson said on Monday that a 39-year-old black male taken into custody yesterday by law enforcement officials has been charged with five counts of first-degree intentional homicide after driving over dozens of people in a Christmas parade.
“A lone subject intentionally drove his maroon SUV through barricades into a crowd of people that was celebrating the Waukesha Christmas Parade which resulted in killing five individuals and injuring 48 additional individuals,” Thompson said at a press conference. “I just received information that two of the 48 are children and they’re in critical condition.”
The suspect, who The Daily Wire is not naming due to company policy on not publishing names and photographs of alleged mass murderers, has a lengthy criminal history that spans decades.
The suspect “has been charged with or convicted on an array of charges over the past 22 years, including battery, domestic violence, cocaine possession and resisting arrest in several jurisdictions in Wisconsin,” The New York Times reported. “He has served at least two jail sentences and spent years on probation and in court-mandated work-release and anger management programs …”
Earlier this month, the suspect was arrested for allegedly punching his child’s mother in the face and hitting her with his car at a gas station. The criminal complaint from the incident says that “officers observed tire tracks on her left pants leg.”
The suspect was later released on $1,000 bail, which the Milwaukee Co. District Attorney said in statement today was “inappropriately low in light of the nature of the recent charges and the pending charges” against the suspect. “The bail recommendation in this case is not consistent with the approach of the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office toward matters involving violent crime, nor was it consistent with the risk assessment of the defendant prior to setting of bail,” the statement added.
“We have information that the suspect prior to the incident was involved in domestic disturbance, which is just minutes prior and the suspect left that scene just prior to our arrival to the domestic disturbance,” Thompson said. “Subject was taken into custody a short distance from the scene and we are confident he acted alone. There’s no evidence that this is a terrorist incident.”
Thompson said that there would likely be additional criminal charges forthcoming as the investigation continues to play out.
Heavy.com, a fact-finding website, along with various journalists online, highlighted posts that the suspect had on social media accounts allegedly belonging to him. Those posts appeared to express anti-Christian sentiment, disdain for Republican politicians and conservative media, and “black nationalist rhetoric.”
Related:
- Wisconsin DA Admits Waukesha Suspect Released On ‘Inappropriately Low’ Bail Before Tragedy
- At Least 5 Dead, 40+ Injured After Driver Plows Into Christmas Parade; Possible Suspected Identified
- Video Emerges of SUV Running Over People During Waukesha Christmas Parade
- Witnesses Describe Carnage After SUV Plows Through Wisconsin Christmas Parade