The sniper who lured hundreds of firefighters into a deadly ambush last night has been named as Wess Roley.
Roley was found dead near his gun on Canfield Mountain outside of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho on Sunday evening.
He slaughtered two firefighters, who haven’t been named, and left a third critically-ill after starting a brush fire cops fear was used to bait the fire department.
Roley was identified by a law enforcement official who spoke with the Associated Press on Monday on the condition of anonymity.
According to a Facebook profile belonging to his mom, Heather Cuchiara, he celebrated his 20th birthday last month.
It remains unclear if Roley was employed, public records say his last address was listed as being in Phoenix, Arizona. A motive has not been revealed yet.
Kootenai County Sheriff Robert Norris said on Sunday it was unclear if the gunman was killed by a cop’s bullet, or if he took his own life.
Roley’s body was pulled away from the scene just as the blaze began to spread across Canfield Mountain.
The fire was first reported at around 1.21pm. Two local firefighters – one from Coeur d’Alene Fire Department and another from Kootenai County Fire & Rescue – were shot and killed while scoping out the scene.
A third was left ‘fighting for his life’ after being struck and rushed to surgery, but is now described as being in a stable condition.
‘This was a total ambush. These firefighters did not have a chance,’ Norris said on Sunday.
Roley was seen glowering from a driver’s license photo but was also pictured on social media images with strikingly-long hair which emphasized his delicate features.
No public social media profiles have been unearthed for Riley and he does not appear to have left any kind of manifesto explaining his reason to murder two.
Roley’s father Jason, 39, lives about an hour’s drive away from the scene of the shooting, in the town of Priest River, Idaho.
He is married to a woman called Sara Roley – Wess’ stepmother – and the pair are parents to two young children.
The scene on Sunday was sheer pandemonium as the brush fire burned and firefighters rushed to the scene only to come under heavy fire.
By around 4.30pm, Sheriff Norris gave law enforcement the authority to shoot to kill the gunman if they were given the opportunity. He deployed two helicopters with snipers to take out the gunman.
It is believed the gunman was the only shooter in the attack ‘based on the trajectory [of the bullets] and based on the type of weapons that this individual had that we could recover,’ Norris said.
He explained that it is likely the gunman was running as he fired, as he announced ‘there is no threat to the community at this time.’
The suspect’s motive for the shooting remains unclear. An investigation into the shooting will continue today, where Norris said he expects to find more weapons that were left at the scene.
Harrowing fire department scanner calls revealed the terror the first responders faced as they arrived on the scene.
‘Send law enforcement right now! There’s an active shooter zone,’ one firefighter could be heard crying out.
‘Everybody’s shot up here!’ the firefighter continued, noting that two battalion chiefs were ‘down’ and he was ‘pinned.’
He was later heard warning his fellow firefighters, ‘Stop. Do not come up here.’ ‘It’s clear to me that this fire was set intentionally to draw us in,’ the firefighter claimed.
On Sunday evening, the two firefighters killed were transported from Kootenai Health to Spokane, Washington.
A procession of police cars, ambulances and fire trucks followed them to pay their final respects.
Locals paid tribute at overpasses across the highway, some waved flags while others saluted the procession of vehicles.
The firefighters were ultimately forced to pull back, with Northern Lakes Fire District Chief Pat Riley telling KHQ he would not be deploying any more crew members until the threat was neutralized.
Meanwhile, the blaze continued to grow to cover 20 acres and the gunman kept shooting.
Idaho Gov. Brad Little called the attack a ‘heinous direct assault on our brave firefighters.
‘I ask all Idahoans to pray for them and their families as we wait to learn more,’ he said, adding that he and his wife are ‘heartbroken’ by the news.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem also said her department was monitoring the situation, saying: ‘Justice will be served’.
The FBI responded to the scene with technical teams and tactical support, Deputy Director Dan Bongino said.
The Idaho House Republican Leadership said in a statement: ‘We are horrified by the murder of two firefighters in Coeur d´Alene, and shocked by such a vicious attack on our first responders. We are praying for them, the injured, their families and their colleagues.’
