Gunman In Douglas County Shooting Had Been Harassing Police
LONE TREE, Colo. (CBS4) - The gunman who killed a deputy and wounded six others at an apartment complex in Douglas County Sunday had been harassing police officers in Lone Tree, investigators said Monday night.
It started back in November, according to the communications manager for the City of Lone Tree.
"Matthew Riehl started sharing harassing posts on his social media sites regarding a traffic stop in Lone Tree that resulted in a court summons," officials stated. "Shortly thereafter, the suspect's behavior escalated to include harassing e-mails to Lone Tree police officers."
Because a Lone Tree police officer was being targeted by "harassing communication," the police department contacted the Douglas County Sheriff's Office to investigate.
It remains an ongoing investigation and officials said they were unable to share any further information about that case.
Riehl spent hours videotaping himself and posting to social media in the hours leading up to the shooting. He also taped the violent confrontation that left Douglas County Sheriff's Deputy Zackari Parrish dead.
Riehl, wearing a University of Wyoming beanie, seems to talk to himself and social media viewers in disjointed, nonsensical diatribes.
Riehl was the subject of a warning to University of Wyoming students two months ago.
The Nov. 6 email from Assistant College of Law Dean Lindsay Hoyt told students to notify campus police if they say Riehl or his vehicle near campus. The email included a photo of Riehl and his car.
UW spokesman Chad Baldwin said Monday that the school in Laramie, Wyoming, was investigating social media posts in which Riehl mentioned the College of Law and some of its employees. The posts did not contain any direct threats.
Baldwin says security on campus was increased for several days.
Riehl was a former Army Reservist who was deployed in Iraq for a year, a spokesperson for the military said Monday.
(© Copyright 2017 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
