6 minutes of horror

Shooter aimed to kill as many as he could

Published: Saturday, Feb. 17, 2007 1:17 a.m. MST
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Deseret Morning News graphic

   Trolley Square shooting rampage

In just six minutes, 18-year-old Sulejman Talovic left a tragic path of destruction that forever changed the lives of dozens of people.

"His intent was to shoot as many people as he possibly could," said Salt Lake City Police Chief Chris Burbank.

Police released details Tuesday on Talovic's shooting rampage that left five people dead before off-duty Ogden police officer Ken Hammond and four Salt Lake City police officers killed him in "a shootout," Burbank said.

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Four other shooting victims are hospitalized.

Talovic was armed with a shotgun, a .38-caliber handgun and "a backpack full of ammunition," Burbank said. Around the man's waist was a bandolier of shotgun shells.

"He had a pump shotgun," said one witness, DeEtta Barta. "He was shooting, and he shot about four shots."

Barta and her friend Ron Mason were celebrating her birthday at the Desert Edge Brewery when they looked out the window and saw Talovic emerging from the parking terrace, firing away.

"It didn't seem real to me," Mason said.

Police said Tuesday they did not know where Talovic got his weapons. Investigators believe the shootings were random.

Some of the biggest questions remained unanswered Tuesday — including why Talovic picked Trolley Square and what prompted the tragedy.

"This is something really unheard of in our community," Burbank said.

Investigators believe that Talovic pulled into the west parking terrace of Trolley Square about 6:44 p.m. on Monday. He got out of his car and shot 52-year-old Jeffery Walker and his son, 16-year-old AJ Walker.

Jeffery Walker was killed. AJ was taken to a local hospital and was listed in critical but stable condition.

Barta, who is an intensive-care nurse, said she rushed to help the young man, who had been shot in the head.

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Photo
Family photo via Associated Press

Sulejman Talovic, 18, is shown in a January 2007 family photo supplied by the family. Talovic allegedly shot and killed five people Monday night and wounded four more before being shot and killed by police.

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