REUTERS
January 27, 2011
NEW YORK CITY, Manhattan — Just shortly after noon authorities were alerted to a suspicious individual carrying what was believed to be a firearm into a New York City apartment building located on 9th Avenue in Chelsea. Within minutes of receiving the call, a sniper has begun firing into noon-day commuters in traffic on the street below from a 20th floor apartment.
Panicked calls flooded in from the scene as the sniper ruthlessly fired on unsuspecting people from his perch. Sixteen people were killed in the initial sniper attack and another eight were seriously wounded. One man, Sterling J. Claremont (67), a former Chinatown antiques store owner was in critical condition when EMTs arrived but died a short while later on scene.
As authorities were arriving, the sniper is alleged to have thrown an improved explosive device from the window of the apartment. The explosion blew out windows across the block and killed four paramedics attempting to tend to ten injured along with five police officers who were first responders on the scene. Officer Ramon Santiago, Sarah Walker, Anthony Bright, William Hunter and Carlos Sanchez were killed by the blast out front of the tenement building.
A short while later, United States Military accompanied by supplementary forces from the Redbird Security Solutions company stormed the building, where a startling discovery was made. The alleged sniper is believed to be one of the men found on the ground floor, presumably injured in an attempt at escape. Ethan Holden (~40) is on the FBI's top 10 most wanted fugitives list, a known associate of the Vanguard international terrorist organization and alleged mastermind behind the tragic 2008 rocket attack on the Washington Irving High School that was blamed at the time on pro-Evolved terrorist group PARIAH.
Holden was taken alive into custody by the United States Military and his current status and whereabouts is unknown. Also arrested on the scene was Ashley Mars (19), wanted in questioning for a drug trafficking charge from 2010. It is unknown at the time if Mars is an accomplice of Holden or was otherwise resident in the tenement building at the time.
After the building was secured, Deborah Clevinger (52) of apartment 20D was found dead in the bathroom of her home from a single gunshot wound to the back of the head. It is suggested that Holden may have had killed her while setting up for his attack. Authorities were unwilling to speculate on Holden's motives or other evidence found at the scene.